A Box of Matches for a New Life
by fingers-falling-upwards
Summary: When Ron and Harry shake hands on the Hogwarts Express, Ace and Luffy wake up. Past traumas and unexpected destinies rest heavy on their shoulders and coping is an ongoing struggle. That doesn't stop then from making friends and short-circuiting minds in their romp through Hogwarts.
1. l: A Pleasure to Meet you, Again

**I can't believe I'm doing this... but here is the third installment of my "not-remotely-over-ace's-death" series. (see burning all the bridges, and young and built to fall for the other two.)**

 **This challenge is #72 from the list made by The BlackSeaReaper**

 **A BILLION thanks to my beta Breather.**

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 _Chaper 1: A Pleasure to Meet you Again_

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Thick clouds of steam billows through the station, weaving around pillars and settling around the shoulders of parents and their children, preparing to board the Hogwarts Express. As the casual upperclassman begin boarding the trains, many bright-eyed first years watch on with envy, waiting to board the train themselves. Ronald Weasley is one such person. It isn't his fault— his mother just _won't_ let go of him, still going on and on about remembering to brush his teeth, and don't forget to turn in homework, and dear lord, please don't follow after Fred and George's example.

"Yeah, yeah, Mum, I got it." He tries to step away from her checking fingers. She keeps a hold on his sweater with tight, clutching hands

"You'll remember to write, of course?"

Ron rolls his eyes. "Yes. I'll write once a week, but I need to board now or else I won't be able to even _go_ to Hogwarts! So let go already, I'm gonna miss the train!"

"Alright then." She exhales and removes her hands from his sweater. The next thing Ron knows, he's being pulled into worn brown wool, and a hand is threading through his red hair. He awkwardly pats her back, failing to hide his desire to get on with things already.

She pulls away finally, hands fluttering to her teary eyes. Water, he's learned, is a guarantee for any Weasley send off— especially the first year one of the kids leaves. He knows because he remembers Percy's send off, Fred and George's send off, and now his own is added to that list. Ginny must be getting sick of it having seen three now, but as he looks at his little sister, all he sees is longing in her eyes. He understands that too, despite the cage of butterflies rattling in his chest. The fluttering sensation only reminds him of what he's here for.

Stepping away from his mother and sister, he climbs up the steep gap between the cement and the train. Ron lingers there for a moment— there's no one else getting on through this door, so he turns instead and waves towards the predictable sight of his sobbing mother— a scarlet island— amid the sea of other crying, worried, and proud parents.

"Goodbye, Ronald! Don't forget to write! Brush your teeth every day!" Her shout barely rises above the din and Ron is _so_ grateful for that. She's just so embarrassing sometimes.

"Bye, Ron!" Ginny's shrill ten-year old voice pierces through all the rabble of yells.

"Bye, Gin!"

His mother shouts again, "Don't worry about making friends, just be yourself!"

He barely caught that, so he doesn't bother responding. Instead, Ron turns towards the corridor of the train's interior and steps in. The train conductor is making his final call and a moment later when Ron's just in the hallway, the train lurches forward with a shriek of metal-on-metal. He stumbles, but quickly rights himself.

Alone, away from his mother's incessant buzzing, Ron allows himself to admit to feeling incredibly nervous. He doesn't know anyone, so where exactly is he supposed to sit? Fred and George certainly won't let him sit with them in their car, which he gets, really he does, but it would be nice if he could...

Ron tentatively approaches the first room in the car and peeks into the glass. A group of what must be third or fourth year girls are crowded around talking intently about something. One looks up and sees his staring. She says something he can't hear and the other girls all turn to look at him before breaking into giggles. He doesn't need a mirror to know his ears are bright red. That room is obviously a bust. He's quick to move down the line.

He rapidly becomes skilled at walking past and staring through the glass in a way that looks casual and nowhere near as borderline desperate and anxious as he feels. He carries on like this through two train cars until he sees a compartment with only one person in it.

A black-haired boy is sitting on one of the cushions. Seems like sort of a scrawny kid, but that's all Ron can really tell since the other boy's face is turned away from him, looking out at the scenery. He looks even younger than Ron, so he has to be a first year too. What's most important is that he's sitting alone. Ron takes a chance and slides the glass door open, hoping the other boy is as awkward as he is.

"Can I sit here? Everywhere else is full." A lie, but not that the other kid will know that.

Green eyes turn to stare at Ron intently. He sees the same eagerness and worry he himself feels. As the kid quickly agrees, Ron feels the stress leave his body. He can help neither the exhalation of relief nor the smile that spreads across his face as he plops himself down on the seat across from the boy.

"My name's Ron, Ron Weasley," he says.

"I'm Harry, Harry Potter."

Ron wasn't expecting that. Not at all. His eyes widen in surprise and he leans forward, immediately scanning the other boy's forehead, which is covered with thick black hair.

"Do you really have it?"

Harry furrows his brow a little. "Have what?"

Ron leans forward, voice dropping subconsciously. "The _scar?"_

"Oh." Harry smiles, before saying, "Yeah." Without Ron even having to ask, The-Boy-Who-Lived lifts up his bangs, revealing a faint, lightning bolt scar.

" _Wicked._ " Ron can't help it. This has to be the most surreal moment in his entire life. He can't wait to rub it in the twins' faces that he actually _met_ Harry Potter.

Realizing that he's still staring, Ron shakes himself a little.

"Well, nice to meet you, Harry." The red head extends his hand in a habit his mother has painstakingly ingrained in him. Harry looked a little relieved at the gesture for some reason, and meets his grip.

Harry reaches forward and their fingertips brush. "You t—"

And the world stops. Everything stops. Because Ron isn't on the train, in England, on the way to school anymore. No, he's on an island covered in jungle thicket, that has the most perfect view of the cerulean water he's ever seen, even after his extensive travels that haven't happened yet. But he's suddenly a boy again, ten-years-old, and his name is—

" _Ace, you need to respect Dadan and the bandits. Even if they're a bunch of good-for-nothing scum, I told them to watch over you, do you understand?"_

The stupid old man, with his stupid Fist of Love that never did anything more than leave aching lumps on his and Sabo's heads—

And he remembers Sabo.

 _"We'll leave all of this behind once we get enough treasure!"_

 _"And we'll never come back to this shitty island ever again."_

That gap-tooth smile that never faded, and then the promise that did— caught in the fiery flames of the world and the Tenryuubito, leaving him to watch over—

And he remembers, oh God, he remembers _Luffy._

" _So it's good that I'm alive."_

 _"Of course!"_

Not a blink, no hesitation, complete certainty. Ace didn't fully believe it at the time, but he did eventually. Everything else falls into place faster now, leaving the islands and creating the Spade Pirates. Trying to move a mountain that turned around and offered him family. Joining that family and making countless nakama. Being betrayed by a part of that family. Hunting down the shithead— getting captured. Sent to Impel Down. _Baptism_. Torture, hopelessness, acceptance, and then horror, because Luffy, stupid, wonderful Luffy, was there, trying to save him. And no, Ace couldn't accept that. It wasn't supposed to be like that! Luffy just didn't get it.

. . . Ace never did find a way to say that he just wasn't worth saving. The look in his little brother's eyes always said that he was, even as Ace shouted at him, no, no, go away! Leave! I don't want you here!

On the platform, staring down on the smoke and explosions, then the cuffs unlock and— _Free,_ free at last. Happy, relieved, and then sorrow, because the steadfast mountain – _Pops—_ was crumbling. Anger at the disrespect, followed by magma, deep, searing magma that cooked the inside of his body, flaying his skin and melting his lungs. And the dread that followed, because it wasn't enough, because Luffy was still too close, and Ace's blood was running down Akainu's fist into a matching hole in his brother's chest. They both collapsed, and there was a rush of panic, and yells and shouts, but Ace barely heard them. Then there was just Luffy and him, bleeding out and clutching each other with what strength remained. There are thousands of words Ace never was able to say to Luffy, and yet the only ones that find his mouth are thankfully the truest.

" _Thank you for loving me."_

He remembers having to watch the light fade from his brother's eyes as Luffy shuddered before becoming all too still in his arms. He remembers wondering if Sabo could ever forgive him for killing their baby brother—

And then... then... then there was no more. Everything after is a mix of memories about growing up in a family chock full of kids, being teased constantly, falling off his broom and scraping his knee, receiving the casual, daily gift of his mother's kisses and his father's hugs, struggling financially, not really having any friends, worrying and dreaming of Hogwarts, and hearing stories about the Dark Lord and the Boy-Who-Lived and—

Ace inhales, suddenly coming back to himself, in the train, on England, on the way to Hogwarts. He feels lightheaded, almost like he's about to pass out. He can't though, because as he looks into the green eyes across from him he sees the same mix of emotions —grief and shock and incredulity and hope, so much _hope—_ and it doesn't seem probable, or even possible, but it feels like he's looking at—

"Luffy?" He barely even spares a thought to what he was saying.

"Ace?" Tears appear in those eyes now. Harry —no _Luffy—_ jumps at him, awkwardly scrambling up into his lap as he grabs him and crushes him in a hug. Ace can only respond instinctively, hoping he can trust his senses because his rational mind is beyond comprehending the sudden rush of information. The impossibility of everything is staggering, but Luffy is in his arms now, absolutely sobbing.

"Are you? Are you really?"

"Yes, yes, yes, _yes!_ "

And the boy before him doesn't really look like Luffy; head a different shape, body skinnier, limbs ganglier, but there is the limitless joy in those teary green eyes that once belonged to a pair of black eyes. There's no one else in any universe that can display such pure genuine emotion like his brother can, and Ace finds himself believing.

"Thank God, thank God I found you. Thank God you lived." Ace lays his hands on his brother's hair, black and messy, just like before.

"Ace is alive," Luffy manages amid the tears. A hand is pressed against Ace's chest, right over his heart. "I'm really, really happy that Ace is alive."

Ace's homemade sweater gradually collects the veritable waterfall of fat tears that have yet to leave Luffy's eyes. Holding him and murmuring words of comfort and assurance is all Ace can do. He can barely believe it himself, but his brother, his little brother who died in front of his eyes is alive, and in his arms— Ace worries that if he lets go everything will dissolve into nothing more than a passing delusion.

They sit there for a long time, longer than is comfortable for either of them in their awkward positions. In the end it's Ace that pulls away, gently nudging his brother back a little so he can look at him.

It looks like Harry, the boy he just met, but as the boy smiles vibrantly, all he sees is Luffy.

"How did this happen?"

Ace doesn't expect an answer, but Luffy gives one anyways. "I dunno. It's kind of neat though."

Neat isn't the word Ace would use right now. ' _Miraculous is more like it,'_ he thinks. Aloud he says, "It's just bizarre. I have all these memories of being Ron, and I think I'm still Ron, but I mean, I'm Ace now too."

"Me too." Luffy tilts his head. "I'm just Harry, but not just Harry anymore. It's a mystery."

Ace laughs. "Yeah, I agree with you on that one. There's no other way of putting it."

Luffy pokes Ace's cheeks, giggling.

"What?"

"Ace has freckles."

The red head bats his little brother's hand away playfully.

"You have glasses. What's up with that, huh?" Ace plucks them off of Luffy's nose and examines them.

"Huh? Give those back!"

Ace holds them by the side of their wireframe, marveling at the thickness of the lens. "Whoever did this doesn't know you very well. You're gonna break these, no question about it."

Luffy pouts as Ace finally returns the glasses to the younger's face. "Will not."

"Will too. Maybe we should look and see if there's a spell that'll fix your vision."

"Ooh, magic! Mystery stuff!"

"It's cool, right? At least we aren't in some boring universe with—"

"Ahem." Both Luffy and Ace turn to see a plump, grey-haired woman pushing a trolley. They also notice they're still sitting on each other. Neither moves.

"Anything off the trolley?" she asks, still eyeing them with distaste.

"Food!" Luffy shouts, jumping off Ace's lap.

"Ahhh," Ace is on the same page, but he suddenly remembers that his financial situation really is dismal at best. He's about to turn her down when Luffy shoves a handful of golden coins at her.

"Two of everything!"

She's startled by his enthusiasm, and takes a step back. "You're going to give yourself a stomachache, young man," she warns.

Luffy just pushes his money towards her even more, eliciting a sigh. She takes one of the golden coins at the top and gives him an armful of snacks, and a few brown coins.

"Thanks!" Luffy chirps. She gives them one last wary look before shaking her head and moving along. Ace blinks. Apparently his brother has a much better financial situation than he does.

"Aaaace! We have food!" Luffy sits across from Ace and dumps all the candy and cakes on the seat next to him.

"I'll do you better yet," Ace says and holds up a finger. He rummages around in his front pockets for four, smushed sandwiches. Luffy hardly pays their state any mind. Instead, his attention is solely centered on the layers of pink mush running between the bread. The older of the two can't fathom now how he could have been so unenthusiastic about corned beef before remembering.

"MEAT!"

Ace grins and tosses two of the sandwiches to his brother who catches them easily. Luffy then proceeds to rip off the wrapping and shoves both of them into his mouth simultaneously. His cheeks are stretched to abnormal lengths and Ace pauses in his own bite of his sandwich.

"Luffy, do you still have your Devil Fruit power?"

"Hm?" Luffy swallows and then pulls at his cheek. Sure enough, the skin follows along his fingers at the familiar action. He blinks in surprise, and Ace knows he hadn't thought about it either.

"I didn't before..." Luffy says, brow furrowed. "I dunno why. Maybe it's magic."

That's the only thing that makes any sense to Ace. Perhaps Luffy's magic transformed his body into what he remembers himself being. Or something. Compared to all the other surprises, this latest one doesn't stand out too terribly. A part of Ace is still struggling to reconcile that he _is_ really Ron, and that his brother is here and very much alive.

"Ne, ne Ace, are you still fire?" Luffy asks, interrupting his thoughts.

Ace hadn't really thought of it, too distracted by his revelation and Luffy to pay it much mind, but as he focuses on his body, he finds his body feels weightless, and fire slowly smolders just below his skin, sending shivers down his spine as it builds into a veritable bonfire. All at once, he can't imagine how he ever lived without the flames running through his body. With barely a thought he summons a bit of fire and holds it in his palm. Luffy grins widely, and Ace echoes it.

"Oh wow!"

Both brothers start and turn towards the door in a panic. A girl around their age stands in the entranceway. Her hair is thick and frizzy and she already has on the black robes of the school uniform. Her wide brown eyes are trained on Ace's flame. The fire disperses from Ace's hand automatically.

"That's a high level spell, isn't it?" she asks excitedly, plopping herself down next to Luffy. "I've read through our course books already, and I know there isn't a fire spell in any of them, especially one that uses wandless magic! Did your family teach it to you? Or have you read even further than I have, getting to the second and third year stuff? My name's Hermione Granger by the way."

Ace blinks at the sudden rush of information. He slowly holds his hand out, but finds his mind is blanking when he reaches for his name.

"That's Donald Westly," Luffy pipes in.

"It's nice to meet you, Donald." She gives him a firm shake of the hand and Ace face-palms.

"It's Ronald Weasley," he corrects, "but just call me Ron, alright?"

Her eyes flick towards Luffy who's still smiling, and Ace can see that she's already jumping to conclusions about him and his level of intelligence.

"And you are?"

"I'm Harry Potter!" He grabs her suddenly limp hand and shakes it.

"H-Harry Potter?" Her mouth falls open. "I can't believe I'm meeting you! I've read about you in so many books! You're one of the most well-known wizards that ever lived! They did a whole chapter dedicated to you and everything that happened with You-Know-Who in Famous Wizards of the Twentieth Century. This is so fantastic!"

"Oh. Thanks." Luffy tilts his head a little, staring intently at her.

His piercing gaze must unnerve her, because Ace watches her fidget for a moment or two before standing in a rush.

"Well, I must be leaving, I've got to help a boy named Neville find his toad. You haven't seen it, have you?"

"Nope." Ace shrugs.

"Alright, well you should probably change into your robes, you know we're going to arrive in an hour or so," she instructs.

"Okay."

She hovers awkwardly at the door, still just staring at Luffy in total fascination. He grins at her and gives a little wave. "We'll see you at the castle!"

A little blush of happiness colors her cheeks and she nods once before disappearing from the doorway. The grin slowly fades from Luffy's face.

"It's weird being famous for something I don't remember," he says, pouting a little.

"I think so too. And geez, you _are_ famous. You have no idea how famous you are, I bet. It's really bizarre."

As Ace tries to wrap his mind around the fact that his little brother is suddenly the savior of the wizarding world, he finds a headache coming on. All of it is too much too soon— his sudden recollection of memories, _dying,_ and Luffy bleeding out— in every way. He isn't ready to deal with his brother's additional status as a celebrity quite yet. Right now, he just wants to get to Hogwarts.

When he woke up in the morning, he knew it was a big day (after all, he was finally going to Hogwarts!), but now he realizes that he didn't know the half of it. Today has changed his entire life in a way he never expected.

"Should we get dressed like Hermit said?" Luffy asks.

"I think her name was Hermione," Ace corrects with a smile.

"Isn't that what I said?"

Ace just shakes his head before standing on the chair and reaching towards the upper compartment for his robes. "Might as well. We can finish eating after I guess."

"Okay!" Luffy chirps, pulling his own truck off the rack and staggering under its weight. He sets it down heavily and lets out a mournful sigh.

"What is it?"

"I'm so weeaaaaaaak," Luffy moans.

Ace grins. "Don't worry, we'll fix that. I bet we can find someplace to spar at Hogwarts. It's a wizarding school, so they have to have somewhere _secret_."

The last word makes Luffy perk up almost immediately, and Ace grins.

Luffy starts laughing. "It's so cool we're going to an actual magic school!"

The boy with the freckles nods along firmly in agreement. He can't wait to see the castle for himself!

OPOP

Luffy is fidgeting beside Ace as they stand in a small crowd of first years, waiting to get called up to the front where they can be sorted.

"Luff, calm down," Ace whispers.

"I want to wear the mystery hat already," Luffy whines.

"They're on the M's. You're coming up, so stay still."

"Fine." He fidgets and remains silent for all of ten seconds.

"D'you think we'll get in the same house?" Luffy finally asks. Ace glances at him, but his brother's eyes are trained forward.

Truthfully Ace had been thinking about that possibility since leaving the train. He didn't want to be split off from his brother so soon after being reunited—

 _in a place without explosions and smoke_

 _where they don't have cuts and bruises covering their skin_

 _and where Ace doesn't worry if his brother will survive the fight against so many admirals especially with how worn he already looks and it's only a matter of time until the marines see it too—_

"Ace?"

The freckled boy is shaken from his thoughts by a tug on his sleeve and a worried look. Quickly regaining himself, he puts a firm smile on his face.

"Definitely. And even if we aren't in the same house, we'll make it work anyways."

Luffy smiles a little and nods.

"Potter, Harry," the strict looking woman calls, and Luffy smiles even wider in excitement. The hall fills with hushed chatter at the sound of Luffy's name. He sits down on the stool eagerly and waits with little patience for her to place the hat on his head. When she does, Luffy's mouth falls open in surprise. Ace watches his brother a tad nervously, hoping that nothing is wrong. It takes longer than any of the previous kids, and he can hear a low din of murmurs rising from the tables, and sees that even some of the teachers are exchanging looks.

After a painful stretch of time, the hat finally opens its mouth.

"Gryffindor!"

A roar of shouts comes from one of the middle tables, and Luffy happily descends from his place on the stool and trots over to his new house. People are clamoring to talk to him, and Luffy's shaking hands left and right. Ace sees his eyes flick back towards him, and sends Luffy a reassuring smile. The deputy headmistress actually has to clear her throat three times to get everyone to be quiet. Once they are, she levels them with a cross look before turning back to her scroll in order to resume the ceremony. Eventually, there are only a handful of kids left, and she calls out,

"Weasley, Ronald."

Ace finds he's inexplicably nervous as he remembers that his family is expecting him to be in Gryffindor. God, if he gets into Slytherin they have grounds to disown him. His mind suddenly catches on the thought that, wait, he suddenly has a family— one with a kind mother and a father who isn't a good-for-nothing piece of trash. He sighs and walks up the steps, wondering when his life got so complicated.

The hat settles a little above his eyes and he waits for _something_ to happen. When it does, he barely holds back a gasp of surprise.

" _Well now, you are an interesting one, aren't you?"_

 _"What— who are you?"_

 _"The Sorting Hat. Now be quiet while I do my job."_

Ace also wonders when his life got so weird. He takes a moment to make a note to kill Fred and George for telling him he had to face a troll. Little shits.

 _"Two brothers of many, I see. The other boy that was up here, he is your brother as well, isn't he? Just not from this life-time."_

 _"I guess,"_ Ace awkwardly thinks. The fact that he's talking to a magical hat in his head isn't something he has fully come to terms with.

 _"Well, you have many qualities to choose from. Hmmm, I'm torn between Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw to be honest. The reason behind the first doesn't really need to be explained, but I'm considering the second because you have such a steep learning curve— you're also incredibly innovative, and your kinetic intelligence is truly remarkable. You would be a welcome addition to that house. Too few persons of different intelligence have gotten into Ravenclaw recently, so I'm leaning towards that one —"_

 _"No!"_ Ace shouts in his mind. _"You can't separate me from Luffy!"_ His throat constricts slightly at the hot jolt of anxiety that shoots through his body.

He hears the hat sigh, and feels(?) light amusement. _"If you let me speak, I'd let you know that while you would indeed make a_ _great_ _Ravenclaw, you fit Gryffindor just as well. And I'd never be so cruel as to separate the two of you after you so recently reunited."_

Ace hesitates.

"Gryffindor!" The hat shouts aloud. Ace is distantly aware of the hoots and hollers from Fred, George and Luffy, but his mind is caught by the hat's awareness.

 _"Be careful. This world has interesting things in store for The-Boy-Who-Lived."_

With that cryptic send-off, the hat is removed from his head and he goes down the stairs a little dazed by it all. He walks towards Fred, George, and Luffy, all of whom are grinning brightly at him.

"Knew you'd pull through!" George says.

"You worried for nothing!" Fred says.

"Yeah," Ace says, a little distractedly as he sits next to Luffy who's grinning like a loon.

"We're in the same house!" Luffy simply chirps. It earns him a few interested looks.

"When were you going to tell us that you made such a nice friend, eh Ronniekins?" George asks.

Before Ace can reply, Dumbledore is clearing his throat and Ace belatedly realizes that the ceremony ended while he wasn't paying attention. Luffy grabs his hand beneath the table, and Ace gives it a squeeze. Because he too knows how important getting in the same house was, and that neither could bear it any other way despite what they said.

Ace tightens his grip and tries to push the hat's warning to the back of his mind. It doesn't matter what the world has in store for his brother. He will never let anything bad happen to Luffy ever again.

Dumbledore claps his hands after a few words and food appears on the table. A _lot_ of food. Ace laughs because Luffy looks like he's died and gone to heaven. Both brothers pile on the food eagerly. Under the occasional glances of Fred and George, Ron uses his best self-control to remain somewhat civilized while eating. Luffy also doesn't go wild like he normally would, but Ace thinks it's mostly because he's so enraptured by everything still. His eyes flicker towards the ceiling and the floating candles, to the professors, and then back to the food in a continuous cycle. After an absolutely splendid feast, followed by a decadent array of desserts, Dumbledore stands once more and goes to the podium. With a wave of his hand the food vanishes, much to Ace's and Luffy's utter dismay.

"Now that we're all fed and watered, I'll say a few things before you all head off to bed." He scans the crowd with piercing blue eyes. "I've been asked again by Mr. Filch, the caretaker, to remind you all that no magic should be used between classes in the corridors. Also, first years should note that the forest around the castle grounds is forbidden to all students. A few of our older ones would do well to remember that too. Also..."

Ace stops listening. His and Luffy's gazes meet, and both of them grin eagerly.

"They have a forest," Luffy utters with excitement. The question of where they are going to train has been answered, all they have to do is figure out the logistics.

"We're going exploring as soon as we can," Ace answers back, making sure to keep his voice low, lest Fred and George hear him, or worse, Percy. No doubt that he would get a Howler just for talking about it.

Ace begins paying attention once more as the entire hall breaks out into a horrible mish-mash of musical notes that only share the words in common that apparently is the Hogwarts school song. Luffy's eyes light up and he's quick to join in with a tune that had a decidedly piratey tone to it. Ace grins and wraps his arm around Luffy's shoulder, humming along with whatever his brother is singing. The tune sounds old, and Ace is certain he's never heard before. He idly wonders where his brother picked up such a song. After the song ends (and Fred and George stop dragging it out with their funeral-march interpretation), Dumbledore dismisses them for bed.

Luffy oohs and ahhs at the moving staircases and portraits, and Ace is a little amused to note that he isn't the only one. Luffy's wide-eyed wonder fits in perfectly amid the flock of excitable eleven year olds. When Percy leads them into the Gryffindor dorm room, they find it filled with large chairs and plenty of communal tables, lit with warm flickering light, and painted with deep reds and gold. Ace thinks it's perfect.

"Boys are on the left and girls on the right. Your names will be on a plaque outside the room and your luggage should already be near your bed. If you have any questions please feel free to ask."

The moment Percy closes his mouth, all of them are leaping towards the stairs, eager to see their rooms. Ace and Luffy are at the head of the charge. They find their room near the end of the hall. A gleaming bronze plaque shows their names side-by-side, and Ace and Luffy can't help but laugh. This couldn't have worked out any better. Ace is beginning to think he believes in karma, because Luffy must have saved a lot of it up if things are going so perfectly.

Exchanging grins, Ace and Luffy turn the knob and enter their dorm.

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 **I intended to post this story when it was fully completed, but at the moment, I plan on stopping after year two, which has been fully written out. Then, if the urge strikes me, I'll go further. I feel the need to post this now because I will be in hiatus from August on.**

 **If you are a fan of Young and Built to Fall... I hope this stymies the disappointment of my not posting something new to that story.**

 **Having said that, I hope you like this. This was an opportunity to write a fic that has an ungodly amount of Ace and Luffy brotherly-ness. Do enjoy...**

 **I'll update in a week.**


	2. l: This is Familiar and Totally New

**Hi again,**

 **I'm too lazy to rewrite Harry Potter books, so I'm not going to.**

 **Much love to our reviewers: Kitty Katrona, WriterKillsReader, kamiam714, poemado, Guest 2, FireD . Rion, Blueberrymuffintop, Elfyliane, and Bob the Almighty!**

 **Thank you for the support. It's so, so appreciated!**

 **Also, thanks again to the amazing breather for all their work.**

* * *

 _Chapter 2: This is Familiar and Totally New_

* * *

Ace is awoken by a frantic shaking of his shoulders. His eyes snap open in a trained response, only for his body to jerk awkwardly, unused to such quick action. He finally registers Luffy, sitting on his bed with a massive smile on his face.

"Waaaake up! We have magic classes!" Luffy gushed.

That's right.

Magic school.

Reincarnation... thing.

Being a red-head.

Luffy being Harry Potter.

Having a _family._

Shit. It's all so strange. He doesn't know how ready he is to face the new world. Luffy's whines are insistent though, and Ace finds himself getting up and leaving the comfort of his bed. He rubs his eyes with the worn sleeves of his shirt and pulls back the curtain that shutters off his bed from everyone else. He's greeted by several odd stares from the other three boys in the room. He realizes then that the whole thing with Luffy probably seemed pretty strange, seeing as the two are supposed to be near strangers. Ah, well. He shrugs inwardly before going to his trunk and finding something comfortable to wear beneath his robe. Luffy dismounts from his bed in an excitable leap and does the same, pawing through his trunk in a careless way. The other boys are still staring at them.

"What is it?" Ace asks finally, after shrugging off his sleeping shirt and pulling a new tee over his head.

"N-nothing," one of the more anxious looking boys, Neville, replies.

"What time is it anyways?"

Dean, whose accent is pleasantly different, glances at the windup watch on his wrist.

"Just about seven."

Ace blinks. "Classes don't start until nine." He turns towards Luffy who hasn't been paying attention to the conversation in the slightest.

"Why did you wake me two hours early?" Ace asks.

"I found out from that Perky guy that the great hall opens at seven fifteen! So hurry up!"

"Perky?" All of them look towards him with confusion. It takes almost a minute for Ace to translate.

"You mean Percy?" Ace can't stop the laughter. 'Perky' isn't really how he'd describe his serious and stern older brother.

"Yeah, that guy," Luffy says flippantly, and realization finally dawns on Ace.

"You woke me for food?" Ace's voice is completely deadpan.

"Yep." Shameless. His brother is shameless.

"Okay," Ace says with an accepting tone, pulling on his robes. At least he's consistent.

"You're okay with that?" Seamus, who also has an accent that makes Luffy's eyes sparkle with excitement, asks.

"I'm hungry, so why not?" Ace looks towards the other three who are either standing or sitting on their respective beds. "Why are you all up? Did L—Harry wake you?"

"Well, yeah," Seamus admits. "It's okay though. I want to make sure I have everything I need before I go to class so this gives me a bit of time, I suppose."

Ace appreciates that the kid is being nice about Luffy and his eccentricities. Then again, it might just be the nerves from having roommates for the first time, especially since Luffy is hailed as the messiah...

Ace shakes himself. Even he still feels the faint sensation of hero-worship in the back of his mind from before he remembered everything. When he looks at his brother though, he never finds the veneer of a hero, just the wonderful glow of something inexplicably special and normal— just Luffy.

"C'mon, let's go already!" Luffy says, tugging the sleeve of his robe. Ace lets his brother guide him out, and they're followed by bemused and awkward glances from their roommates. Luffy's sense of direction has never been the best – not as bad as a certain swordsman, if Ace is remembering the countless stories right – but Luffy can get lost easily because of how effortlessly his mind wanders. Finding food though has never been a problem though. Luffy drags Ace excitedly down the moving staircases, only waiting for the next one to come because of Ace's steady grip. If anyone sees Ace and his brother jumping from several dozen meters in the air, they're likely to be sent off to Saint Mungo's, not to mention that Ace isn't sure how well their untrained children's bodies would cope with the strain.

They make it to the great hall in record time, just as Filch is opening the doors. Luffy speeds in and claims a seat at the table they sat at yesterday. As they sit down, a small buffet-like section appears around them. Luffy lets out an excited sound and proceeds to eat like there is no tomorrow. Ace joins in at a more sedate pace. He's glad they're the only ones there because they really are making a mess. He probably should work on that... he and Luffy really don't need to stick out anymore, and besides, his mother and brothers tease him about his lack of manners just from chewing with his mouth full. He can barely imagine the look of shock on his mother's face if she saw this... He makes a note to talk about it with Luffy later.

Thankfully, Luffy's eating has slowed down considerably by the time other people start filtering in, and by eight o'clock the younger brother has stopped altogether. Ace stares at him with concern, and Luffy gives him an incredibly disturbed look.

"I can't eat as much."

Ace laughs. "Well, you are eleven again. You don't need as much."

Luffy lets out a whine before setting his head on the table miserably. Ace just grins while eating a cherry turnover.

"Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley?" A stern voice demands their attention. Both of them turn to see Professor McGonagall hovering above them.

"Yes, Professor?" Ace asks, his practiced manners reflexively falling into place.

"I have your schedules," she says. With a quick flick of a wand, two sheets of paper appears before them, floating in air. Luffy laughs in delight, and Ace can't help but grin too. He's technically grown up with magic his whole life... and then at the same time, he hasn't. It's that part of him that shares a secretive smile with Luffy.

"Your first class is with me," McGonagall says, "Don't be late."

With that warning she moves down the bench to other students.

Ace blinks before taking his schedule from the air. Luffy does the same. Neither of them look too heavily at the classes they have before they place them side by side, seeing what matches up. Ace realizes ecstatically that they have all the same classes together. _All_ of them. It seems too good to be true! He's going to spend every day with his brother, just like when they were younger.

His wonderfully alive brother. He hasn't let himself think about everything that's happened—

 _the blood flowing down a magma laced hand, mixing with his little brother's_

 _holding him as they both bled out_

 _death_

 _—_ And actually, he still can't think about it. Not if he wants to avoid having a panic attack. He'll need to face it eventually... But Luffy's sitting across from him, brightness dancing in his eyes. It'll be fine if he puts it off for a while, right? All he needs to do now is figure out how to cope with having memories from two very different lives, attending magic school, and keeping his brother safe. It doesn't seem that hard. The only important thing is maintaining his sanity...

Luffy's grinning like an idiot, and Ace knows that he'll be fine with everything that comes his way. Because he and Luffy are _together._

* * *

School, Ace soon realizes, is sort of boring. Having never attended any kind of formal schooling, he discovers that the constrictions and preciseness of his schedule are a building irritant. If only they could pick and choose when they went to class...

Ace doesn't dislike the classes themselves though; he and Luffy actually enjoy a great majority of them. Transfiguration is especially neat. Luffy's utterly enamored by it ("Ace, we can turn things into meat!"). Ace agrees it's cool, but neither of them especially excels in the class. Not like Hermione Granger. On the first day she's the only one to manage turning her match into a needle, and Luffy cheers for her.

"That's so cool! Nice one, Hermit!"

The resulting blush of embarrassment on her face isn't really what Luffy was going for, but Ace knows there's no helping it. Hermione will slowly but surely get used to the two brothers and all their strange quirks, as will everyone else in their year. The fact that no one blinks when Luffy gets stars in his eyes and cries 'That's so cool!' anymore is a sign that the process has already begun.

Defense Against the Dark Arts, on the other hand, is sort of a joke. Ace was really looking forward to it, but the professor is such a squirrely guy that they hardly get anything done. It's so bad that Luffy actually gets headaches from the class.

Something Ace didn't expect, was to enjoy History so much. After hearing everyone gripe and groan about History of Magic, Ace wasn't expecting a lot, but it turns out to be one of Ace's favorite classes. He and Luffy take seats in the back and then... zzzzzzz. It's like a scheduled nap, and Professor Binns' voice creates excellent white noise. Whenever Ace makes eye-contact with Hermione Granger after waking up from an exceptionally refreshing nap, he catches her sending them severely disapproving looks. Luffy always smiles when he sees them.

On Wednesday and Friday, they stay up late and climb to the astronomy tower where they study stars and map out constellations. Ace is utterly fascinated to realize that the sky here is different from the one back home, and he's eager to explore the variances, and Luffy just loves looking at the stars (Ace jokes about shiny things, and Luffy never refutes it). He explains to Ace that there are people who have been to the moon on this world, called _astronauts._

It's a muggle thing so Ace understands why he never heard about it, but he suddenly wonders what other things he missed out on learning growing up because they were nonmagical. He's grown up with a bias against muggles, he now realizes. Muggles aren't bad – rather harmless, in fact – but they are treated like slow children in his house; those silly, struggling muggles, so unaware of the magical world around them— he realizes now that his family and the rest of the wizarding world certainly aren't any better. Getting someone on the moon is a big deal... and cool. Ace makes a mental note to ask Luffy about it later, as he does every time something like this pops up, but finds he always forgets. School is more occupying than he expected. Whether it's exploring new bits of the castle, attending classes, doing homework, or just running through the halls with Luffy, Ace's schedule is full. He'll admit it's rather pleasant, despite the irksome restraints. They've uncovered a fair amount of 'mystery rooms' as Luffy calls them. In the first week, they even find a massive three headed dog! He stands guard over a trap door that just begs for Ace and Luffy to explore it. Common sense and a packed schedule prevent them from doing so, despite their desires, and eventually it fades from mind, just another quirk of the incredible castle.

Charms is a neat class, even though Professor Flitwick is an excitable thing. They pick up all sorts of useless spells that make life so much more convenient. He can't even imagine what it would be like back in Ace's other timeline if they had such things. _Alohamora,_ for example, would have come in handy when dealing with locked rooms, trunks, and cuffs—

 _seastone cuffs that cut into his painfully tangible body_

 _struggling to escape them as his family charges towards battle on his behalf_

 _he never_ _ **wanted**_ _that—_

Ace... Ace doesn't have time to think about things like that with all his classes going on. Whenever something like that resurfaces and he spaces out for a minute or two, he immediately pushes it to the back of his mind. Anyways, Ace like charms for the most part, except for Flitwick's mild fascination with his little brother. During the first class, the short professor fell off his stack of books after just saying 'Harry Potter.'

He isn't the only one who pauses and gasps. It pisses Ace off. They treat his brother like some kind of strange creature. He finds himself glaring at them a tad more viciously than he should be. Whenever he gets too riled, though, Luffy is there, laughing and telling him he doesn't mind. Ace still doesn't know how true that is, although Luffy seems to believe it at least.

He still can't quite reconcile that his brother is apparently The-Boy-Who-Lived. One day Ace gives over to his curiosity and asks if Luffy remembers anything about the night. His brother shakes his head and shrugs. Ace wonders how much it really bothers him, but is afraid to breach the subject. There had been an emptiness in those eyes that Ace wasn't ready to face, so instead Ace asks about his life and is captivated by the fantastical muggle stories his brother weaves. Apparently he lives with his Aunt, Uncle, and their son, Dudley. Luffy doesn't seem to be overly fond of them for whatever reason (Ace hypothesizes that they're incredibly boring people, something that would likely make Luffy sigh and whine dramatically), so he doesn't push the subject too much.

Instead, Ace returns in kind, sharing bits of his life with Luffy. A lot of his stories have to do with his other brothers and Ginny. Luffy looks excited by having so many siblings, and it makes Ace a little sad to realize that in this world, he didn't have a single one, that he was alone... but that was before Ace returned. He will never let Luffy forget he has a brother, although he has to hold himself back from brotherly displays of affection. He hates being the same age. He can't look after Luffy the way he did before, and it just isn't fair.

Potions with Professor Snape is ... interesting. The man has an intimidating air. Or at least it probably is for the eleven-year-olds Luffy and Ace share the class with (this excludes the Slytherins, who seem like they're in their zone), but for the two brothers who have each faced down Shichibukai, stared death in the face, waged war on the world order, and trained with Garp— it isn't too impressive. The first day the pair have his class, Snape goes out of his way to mess with Luffy. Ace nearly sets their shared desk on fire in his anger at the blatant disdain for his brother for no reason other than Luffy's inherent fame. Luffy smiles the whole way through though, so Ace can't say a thing.

"Tell me, Potter, what would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?" their professor drawls.

Hermione's hand shoots up in the air, and Ace can almost see her falling from her seat in her franticness.

"I dunno," Luffy chirps, unbothered. A few of the kids risk laughing but it halts when Snape makes a particularly nasty face.

"Thank you for that. We now all know that fame clearly does not supplement a person's well-roundedness in the slightest. Do you happen to know where one would find a bezoar?"

Again, Hermione raises her hand, looking like she might pull a muscle.

Luffy tilts his head. "What's a bezoar? Is it edible?"

This time, plenty of the kids start snickering, Gryffindors and Slytherins alike. Ace rolls his eyes. Luffy comes off as being incredibly stupid sometimes. Still... that's no excuse for Snape to pick on him like that. Said professor looks incredibly smug and disgusted at the same time, and Ace can almost see the derogatory remarks hovering on his tongue.

"Tell me, what is the difference between monkshood and wolfsbane?"

"Dunno!" Luffy replies once more, before his eyes dart towards Hermione. "Can I use a lifeline?"

Everyone pauses, and a few of the muggleborn kids choke on air. Ace has no idea what that's about. Snape looks just as bewildered.

"A _what?"_ Snape hisses.

"A lifeline. It's the thing on that show with the money. When the person doesn't know the answer they can either eliminate some of the choices or phone a friend."

"Are you talking about a _game show?"_ Snape eventually growls out. That doesn't clear anything up for Ace, and he sees many of the other kids looking confused, but a few seem to know what's going on, and their eyes are so wide they look like they might pop out from their sockets. It's interesting to Ace, though, that Snape does understand the reference.

"Yeah! So you do get it! Alright, I'm going to use my lifeline and call... Mmmmm Hermit!" Luffy points towards the stunned girl whose arm is still raised. Her face quickly heats up in anger.

"My name is Hermione!"

"That's what I said! Now are you going to help me, or not? I'm pretty sure there's a time limit on these things."

She needs no more invitation.

"The first one, sir, would create an incredibly powerful sleeping draught. A bezoar can be found in a goat's stomach, and monkshood and wolfsbane are the same plant!" Hermione blurts everything out in a very educated sounding rush of words. Ace doesn't get a lick of it, but from the interesting shade of red their teacher's face is gaining, it seems he does.

"Fifty points from Gryffindor for such a blatant disregard for a professor and complete arrogance! Now, why aren't you taking notes?! Write this down," Snape says, raising his voice. Many of the Gryffindor kids look just about ready to protest, but his still livid expression keeps their tongues. He turns his back to write on the board. Hermione looks like she's about to cry, so Ace turns slightly and gives her a smile and a friendly wink. She starts, seeming unsure what to do with it aside from giving him an uncertain smile, and Ace faces forward again. From the corner of his eyes he sees Dean and Seamus giving Luffy thumbs up and wide grins, so Ace knows that at least friendship is worth more than house points, which is a rather warm thought.

* * *

It isn't until three weeks into the term that Ace and Luffy find the time to visit the friendly giant with the 'awesome' umbrella. Luffy seems to think the groundskeeper is beyond cool, so Ace is naturally curious. His brother thinks a lot of things are awesome, a few of which are enemies' attacks, anything shiny, and cyborgs, so Ace can't fully swallow down the suspicion he occasionally feels for people who spend time with his brother. Ace doesn't really doubt that this Hagrid guy is probably just as nice as he sounds, but he still wants to see for himself.

As they follow the directions Hagrid sent them in the post that morning, the duo find themselves approaching a small cottage just on the edge of a _forest._ Oh yes, _the_ forest. Luffy is nearly salivating at the strange sounds he hears coming from it, and Ace has to push his brother to keep him on target.

Hagrid, just as Luffy said, is both friendly and pretty cool. During the visit, a large black dog named Fang energetically slobbers all over them, and both enjoy playing with him, while Hagrid happily speaks about some strange creatures that Luffy can't seem to help oohing and ahhing about with delight. Hagrid also makes an incredible coffee cake that's a real challenge for their jaws, but they've eaten much harder things before, and though it's a bit crumby, it's got a unique flavor. The man seems utterly delighted when they ask to take some back to the castle. What really seals the deal for Ace's approval, though, is the obvious fondness apparent when Hagrid looks at his brother. Near the end of the visit, after meeting and catching up, tears gather in Hagrid's eyes. The brothers glance at each other, alarmed, as the tall man hiccups and sobs into the largest handkerchief Ace has ever seen.

"You just look so happy, Harry," he manages after a while. "It's just so nice to see. I'm glad you're happy here."

Luffy's smile softens and he dashes forward to give the gentle giant a hug. Ace sort of wonders what his brother was like before, when he was just Harry, for the groundskeeper to have such a reaction. His own impression of Harry was limited to two minutes of awkward introductions, and he means to ask why he might have been unhappy as they leave the cottage, but Luffy scans their surroundings before darting towards the edge of the woods. Ace joins him gladly, and as they scramble up one of the massive trees, arms burning from the sudden exercise, all thoughts leave Ace's mind except for _free._

From then on, the pair makes it a habit to go to the forest once a day on the weekdays and three times a day on the weekends (returning only for food and homework). The Forbidden Forest quickly becomes their haven. It's the only place they can call each other 'Ace' and 'Luffy' without worrying about wandering ears. They don't have to limit their strength either, which is a particular relief. They aren't very strong right now, but they're getting there, day by day, with each pathetic spar.

Ace never actually understood what it would be like having to continually hide his Devil Fruit power. In the other world, there was no need. Here, though, he'll be thrown in St. Mungo's or interrogated by the Ministry if anyone sees him catch fire. So he keeps himself in line, never letting so much as a spark escape his being— even when Snape bullies his brother, or the other kids gossip and gossip because _apparently_ there's nothing else to talk about. It's constraining and painful. Ace knows Luffy feels it just as keenly. Every now and again, Ace catches his brother sticking out his arm in the direction of something far away – it's reflexive, just part of who he's been since he was seven years old, and Ace is frankly impressed that his brother is always able to catch himself before giving himself away. The action is always followed by a blank expression before Luffy rescinds his reach.

Ace only got his fruit after joining the Whitebeard Pirates, so it's only been two years that he's _been_ fire. Not having that burning, oxygenating feeling hovering right below his skin, the weightlessness that being a logia user provides— it's suffocating to even think about. He can't imagine living without it anymore, now that he's remembered it. Luffy must have it much, much worse, because he's been rubber for over ten years. Luffy utilizes the time in the woods that isn't spent sparing, by climbing up the great trees, arms extending to ridiculous lengths.

Ace decides that something he absolutely must teach his brother is Haki. He didn't know before the battle at Marineford that Luffy possessed the capacity for Conqueror's Haki, but looking at everything he knows about his brother, it appears rather obvious to him now. Ace tries on their third visit to the forest to force a rather large spider they came across (there are an awful lot in this forest for some reason) to its figurative knees. His attempt is futile and all he gains is a headache for his trouble. For a moment he doesn't understand why he can't use it. He activated it when he was this age before.

"Maybe you aren't strong enough," Luffy suggests blandly as he beats the spider into the dirt. "Mind and body. That's what Zoro used to say."

It clicks all at once for Ace and a grim determination sets into his body. They need to get into shape before the end of the year if they want to even start with the very beginnings of Haki.

Thankfully, they seem to have the time. Classes, eating, training, sleeping— that's their schedule. Nothing bad or even exciting (to their dismay) ever happens outside the usual peculiarities of their classes.

While school is confining, boring, and even stressful at times, Ace finds that the forest and his brother soothe all his stressors, and it is in those moments that he feels at home.

* * *

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 **Thanks for reading. I hope you like this bit.**

 **I think perhaps you've noticed by now that I am just SO lazy. Like with young and built to fall, I'm just too lazy to do a line-by-line and scene by scene rewrite of the plot. So I'm not. Also, parts will be different. Some bits will be the same. Some bits will be very different.**

 **Anyways, I'd love any feedback.**

 **I'll see you all next week.**


	3. l: This is How it Goes, Right?

**Back again.**

 **Alright, I'm just gonna answer the question y'all have been asking; YES. There will be other characters from OP world. Patience though... I like to pace myself. Granted we are plowing through book one...**

 **Thank yous to WriterKillsReader, Kanda Yuuki, poemado, Angel Winx, CallisaDawn, ErinSkyeLi . 27, Ender the multiverse Detective, Elfyliane, Guest 2, FireD . Rion, RedHeadsRock1010 {x2}, and Koka! I appreciate all the kind words, and I especially thank you repeat offenders.**

 **Again, thanks go to breather, a wonderful beta who's wonderful.**

* * *

 _Chapter 3: This is How it Goes, Right?_

* * *

"I can't believe you've never flown before," Ace says. For once, he's the one dragging his little brother around. They just got out of History of Magic, and Luffy's still shaking off the last remnants of sleep. Ace had been too excited about their impending flying class to sleep— it's the first time he's stayed awake during the class the entire couple months they've been here. As he expected, it's boring, dry, and uninteresting; so basically the perfect soundtrack for sleeping.

"I was living with muggles," Luffy whines. "If I'd known you could fly I woulda been on this way earlier!"

"No time like the present, so hurry up and come to the pitch!"

"Stop running," Luffy says tiredly.

They make it to the pitch in record time and meet several of the other first years huddled together, excited and nervous. It seems their lesson is with the Slytherins, and Ace bites back a groan. He's been told all his wizard-life that Slytherins are dark wizards, and nothing good can come from them. Drawing from his experience in his other lifetime, Ace knows better than to jump to such black and white conclusions, but still... they all really are sort of gits. Especially Malfoy. The fact that he teases Luffy rather often has nothing to do with Ace's opinion though. He's being entirely objective.

The lesson with Madam Hooch starts slow... like really slow. Ace had lessons from Bill when he was younger, so he knows the basics. It's a little pitiful watching all the kids glaring at their brooms, which are just jumping and twisting on the grass. Only Luffy and Malfoy got an instant response, and Ace barely resists the urge to ruffle his brother's hair, remembering that they're the same age and it would look bizarre.

The lesson takes a drastic turn when Neville launches from the grass and gets his wrist broken from an unfortunate collision with the wall of the castle, and then the ground. Madam Hooch quickly gets everything in hand and leaves them with a stern warning to keep both feet planted on terra firma until she gets back. She then disappears into the castle, dragging a watery-eyed Neville with her.

Ace sighs in disappointment. It seems Luffy won't actually be able to fly today.

"Give it back."

Ace's head snaps up as he realizes his brother has wandered from his side. Right now, Luffy stands across from Malfoy, who's holding Neville's Remembrall with a sneer on his face.

"What if I don't want to?"

"Then I'll take it from you."

"Fat chance! I'll—" Malfoy never does finish his sentence because Luffy snaps his arm forward and knocks the Remembrall from Malfoy's grasp in a movement that's incredibly slow by their standards, but is apparently rather quick to everyone else if their gasps are anything to go by. Ace moves to the side and catches the Remembrall before it hits the ground. He examines it for scratches, and is relieved to find it's barely damaged and still all in one piece. Ace is impressed by his brother's level of self-control. Merlin knows he would have preferred to smack the blond boy in the face instead of the hand.

"You— you—" Malfoy splutters pointlessly, still stunned by what happened.

"What?" Luffy tilts his head. His brother's expression is blank, and Ace knows that Luffy has almost had enough of Malfoy's petty cruelty.

"Everyone, class is dismissed!"

The whole group jumps and turns to see Madam Hooch approaching them. Her expression is displeased and all of them are eager to escape her stare. It's probably for the best considering that Luffy doesn't back down when it comes to defending a friend. Ace and Luffy head back to the castle with everyone else, catching snippets of conversation that, as ever, revolve around the younger boy. Ace wonders if they'll ever get tired of gossiping about him. Honestly, Luffy's quick reflexes are nothing to write home about.

"Awww." Luffy sighs. "I really wanted to fly."

Ace wanted Luffy to fly too. He remembers that there's a certain freedom that comes with the flight— he wants so badly to share it with his brother. He pauses as he's struck by inspiration.

"Come with me," Ace urges, and the pair run the rest of the way towards the school.

* * *

They take the magic stairs two at a time, making many of the witches and wizards they pass by look towards them curiously. Ace is glad to note that he isn't very worn out by their dash. Their forest excursions have started paying off physically.

Ace says the password before quickly stepping through the entrance. He sighs in relief when he sees the twins sitting at a desk, collaborating quietly on something Ace is sure will be traumatizing for whoever they're pranking.

"Fred! George!" he says in a rush.

They both start and turn towards him. Ace sees the snappy retort about his breathlessness just sitting on their tongues so he takes the initiative.

"Can you get us brooms to use?"

The other two blink in unison.

"Why?" they ask.

"L—Harry." He needs to stop doing that. "Harry was supposed to get his first flying lesson today, but it got cancelled because Neville broke his arm. You two are on the quidditch team, so you can help us, right?" He turns his head and finds Luffy isn't beside him in his usual place. Instead he's near the entryway, staring with fascination at one of the moving portraits.

Fred and George pause before smiling.

"Of course dear brother-"

"-ickle Ronnykins-"

"-we'd love to help-"

"-educate your newest little friend."

Ace smiles widely. "Thank you!"

The brothers return the grin.

"Meet us on the pitch in forty minutes. We have some Wood to wear down."

Ace doesn't bother asking. He just nods.

* * *

Ace is rocking on the balls of his feet in excitement. Beside him, his little brother grins brightly. Ace can't help but feel psyched because really, Luffy's excited now, but Ace knows there'll be no comparison after he's actually _flown_.

"Finally," he huffs, as he sees Fred and George lugging out four brooms from the castle.

He runs forward to meet them halfway, and his eagerness makes both twins smirk in amusement.

"Stay calm-"

"-if you start foaming at the mouth-"

"-we're going to get in all kinds of trouble with Mum."

"And then we'll forever be able to say-"

"-this is why we can't have nice things," they finish in sync.

Ace grins under their teasing, uncaring. "Thank you!" he says instead, almost breathless in his excitement, and the smile on his face is absolutely blinding. Both twins are a little stunned by the earnestness and depth of his expression, and Fred actually drops one of the brooms. Ace quickly scoops it up.

"Harry." Ace turns to the side where Luffy is normally hovering, only to see him back where Ace was standing before, back turned, looking out to the lake. Ace frowns. "Harry!"

Luffy turns, smile on his face, before trotting over.

"Hi!" He grins at Fred and George, who respond in kind. Ace knows that if he doesn't hurry, the twins will have him and Luffy pinned to the ground with jokes and teasing, so he passes one of the brooms to Luffy and takes one for himself.

"Come on, like earlier," he directs. Luffy nods and straddles his broom like before, eyes blank in concentration. His knees bend in anticipation.

George blinks. "Oi, Ron, I think he probably should get a little more practice before—"

"Now kick off!" Ace calls. Luffy obeys, and lifts into the air, five, ten, fifteen, twenty meters! Ace grins and copies quickly to make sure his brother doesn't fall. Luffy hovers in the air a little shakily, both hands gripping the broom and eyes turned downward in concentration.

"Harry," Ace greets, flying in a little closer. "You've got to keep hold of your broom, but you don't have to strangle it."

Luffy frowns. "It doesn't like me. Whenever I try to get it to move it starts to wobble."

"You've got to let your instincts guide the broom," Fred adds in, making Ace jump. He'd forgotten that Fred and George said they'd supervise as their stipulation for supplying the brooms. His older brother is floating idly to the left of Luffy. "Let the broom feel what to do."

"I think you're overthinking this, mate," George says, and Ace thinks it's no coincidence he's on Luffy's right side. Before fully remembering everything, Ace had never really noticed the subtle signs of protective older brothers displayed by Fred and George. Now, with his immense experience with the subject – both receiving it from many of the Whitebeard pirates, and cultivating it with Luffy – he sees it clearly all at once manifested in the twins. He can't help but smile a little.

"I think this is the first time anyone's accused you of thinking too much," Ace says, amused. George's smile drops slightly while Fred begins grinning even more. Oops, that probably seemed mean. They still didn't know _Luffy_ yet.

"It give me headaches," Luffy replies, totally straight faced, and now George is laughing along. Ace chuckles because he knows how serious his brother is actually being.

"Alright then, let's see what we can do about that." Ace pretends to ponder the matter when his eyes catch on the hilt of Luffy's wand, sticking out haphazardly from his robes where he'd hastily stuffed it after classes. Lurching forward suddenly, Ace slips the wand from his brother's pocket and darts away before Luffy's quick fingers can catch him. Ace knows that it's only the presence of the twins that keeps his brother's hands from stretching to recapture his lost wand.

Ace grins. "Catch me if you can!" With that he starts floating away, not going as fast as he probably could, but he's more focused on glancing over his shoulder to see if George was right. From the sudden steadiness of Luffy's broom and the playfulness that replaces the concentration in his eyes before, Ace would wager his other brother was right.

"Give it back!" Luffy cries, and suddenly, he's racing forward, right after Ace, and the elder actually has to speed up in order to avoid being knocked over. Ace maneuvers to the right quickly, effectively evading his brother, only to barely dodge a second attack coming from his left. Looking to the side, he sees Fred with a devious look on his face, and he knows how this is going to go.

"Two on two! I call The-First-Year-That-Lived. Geo, you can take Ronny-kins!"

"Fair enough!" George rises next to Ace. "We've got the advantage here, being two Weasleys."

Ace and George play a rather marvelous game of keep away, but after half-an-hour, Luffy finally gets a hang of it well enough to work with Fred to outmaneuver he and George and catch them by surprise.

Ace exhales, looking happily at the sight of his joyous little brother, who is breathlessly and proudly holding his wand.

"Alright then, the winners of this match are The-Boy-With-Four-Eyes and yours truly," Fred says with a flourishing bow of his broom.

"Let's play again sometime," George says, starting his descent. Luffy bites his lip.

"Can we stay up here a little longer?" Luffy asks.

"Please?" Ace adds.

George and Fred make eye-contact before looking back and saying in unison.

"Okay, just this once though. We have better things to do than watch first years flying in circles."

"Like messing with Filch-" George supplies.

"-sticking magical gum in the locks-" Fred tacks on.

"-spreading nefarious rumors about Snape's hairdresser-"

"-making fun of first years—"

Ace cuts him off. "You're already doing that one."

Fred and George grin.

"Right you are," Fred says.

"We'll be saying lovely things about you two on the grass then," George says as a goodbye before descending back to the ground.

Ace looks up. Now it's just him and Luffy. His little brother's broom isn't shaking in the slightest; his hands are relaxed but firm, and his eyes have a wild glint in them, and all at once Ace knows that Luffy gets what flying really means— _freedom._

Both he and Luffy break out into laughter before Ace nudges his broom forward towards the lake.

"Come on, then."

Luffy has something else in mind though and quickly punches Ace's arm.

"You're it." Without another word the bespectacled boy shoots over the lake, laughter fading in the wind.

"You little brat," Ace murmurs, before leaning into his broom and darting after. Whereas their game of keep-away had been confined to the area above the greenery, this time Ace and Luffy utilize their entire air space, skirting the top of the glittering lake waters, and gliding through the clouds as they chase after each other. Luffy gets a hold of flying _fast._ He quickly starts adding increasingly complex maneuvers to the game, and Ace is barely just keeping ahead of the curve by creating his own moves. It's during one of those tricks, where Ace is hanging upside-down on his broom like a sloth, that he spies a third figure on the grass with the twins. He squints, but can't make out any other details besides that it's a boy, and he's wearing the black robes of the school. Luffy's swift jab to the ribs is enough to draw Ace's attention away from the ground and back to his brother.

Ace has to admit that Luffy is a bit more creative than he is. The new moves his brother creates are completely out of the box and always have been— who else would dangle from a broom with a single hand and expect to fly smoothly? Thinking back to their lives as pirates, Ace can see that it's always been that way. Although Ace's own attacks were nowhere near shabby, his brother's were completely unorthodox. Constricting the blood vessels of one's body in order to increase the blood flow and speed up muscle contraction is nothing any sane human would come up with— it takes Ace's incredibly inimitable brother and his questionable sanity to create something so unique.

As they circle back around the castle, this time with Luffy chasing after him, Ace's stomach drops. Another figure has joined the group on the grass while they've been flying, and this one is clothed in dark emerald shimmering robes.

"Shit!" he hisses. Luffy almost runs into him when he suddenly stops.

"What is it?"

"It think we're in trouble," Ace says, gesturing to the grass.

"McGonagall?" Luffy looks equally startled. McGonagall reminds them in a strange way of a _much_ nicer, and **_much_** saner version of their grandfather crossed with Makino of all people. She's intimidating and scary like their grandfather, but can easily make them afraid without using any force at all, like Makino.

Ace quickly descends from the sky, Luffy tailing right behind him. The freckled boy dismounts and catches the ground running. He finds Fred and George standing next to an upperclassman with dark hair. Beside the three stands the intimidating visage of their house head.

"Sorry! We're sorry!" Ace starts as he reaches the Deputy Headmistress. He isn't sure what he's apologizing for, but he should be sorry for something if the thinness of her lips is anything to go by.

" _Never_ have I seen such reckless flying in all of my years here!" she exclaims.

"Sorry," Luffy adds, following suit, but that just seems to enrage her more.

"You especially, Mr. Potter! What on earth possessed you to try hanging from a broom by your ankles?!"

Luffy opens his mouth, but Ace puts his hand over his brother's face before he can speak.

"Not to mention that your speed far exceeded anything close to responsible for unpracticed first years, and certainly more than those Clean Sweeps should have allowed! How is that possible?"

Luffy lifts Ace's hand from his mouth. "Magic," he replies.

McGonagall sighs in exasperation. "You boys are going to give people heart issues one day," she says before looking at them skeptically. "I can't believe I'm actually doing this, but Wood, take your pick."

"What?" Ace utters in confusion. He looks to the side where the dark-haired upperclassman is standing. The boy, Wood, steps forward with an excited gleam in his eyes that sets Ace off kilter for some reason.

"What is he picking?" Luffy asks. "His favorite food?"

"The Gryffindor team is in need of a new Seeker," McGonagall informs them. "Despite my reservations, and make no mistake, I _do_ have them, I cannot let such raw talent go untapped. So, Wood will choose between the two of you."

Light dawns in Ace's eyes as utter joy bursts through his mind. He'll be the youngest Seeker of the century! His family will be so proud to hear it; no more will he have to face the anticipation of getting on the quidditch team, as all Weasley's have done— sans Percy, for obvious reason. It would be perfect! Except... Ace sees his little brother's eyes, sees the unadulterated excitement in them. He knows that Luffy isn't after the prestige or fame— Luffy wants to play for the sheer love of it. The purity of the emotion makes Ace sigh.

"Let Harry have it," Ace says firmly, rejecting the position. Fred and George gape, utterly gobsmacked, as Wood furrows his brow and McGonagall frowns.

"Are you sure?" the witch asks.

Ace nods. "Absolutely."

"Ace," Luffy utters, looking uncharacteristically hesitant.

"Don't worry about it," Ace says, smiling. The more he thinks about it, the better he feels about his choice. "I'll try out for the team next year."

Wood coughs a little. "You have a _very_ good chance of getting on it."

"I can wait then." Ace shrugs, and is rewarded by a rushed hug from his little brother and a beaming smile. Now Ace has absolutely no hesitation or second thoughts.

"You know, we have a spot for a substitute Chaser. You could join the practices and get some experience," Wood suggests.

Ace's eyes light up. "That would be brilliant."

"Then it's settled. Our first practice is set for Saturday," the older boy informs them.

Luffy lets out a cheer, grinning like a maniac. Suddenly his expression drops.

"What is it?" Wood asks.

"Ah. I don't know how to play."

Fred and George start snickering while Ace huffs a sigh and smiles. "I'll teach you, don't worry about it."

McGonagall nods her head decisively. "Excellent. I have a good feeling about our next season. I can't wait to see Severus' face during the game. It'll be a nice change from last year. I couldn't look the man in the eye the whole year, we were flattened so regularly." Her expression, more passionate in her sudden competitive spirit than Ace has ever seen, quickly turns stern.

"Right now I think you two had best return to the dorms. I know both of you have that eight inch essay on the logistics of metal to wood transfiguration due tomorrow." Her eyes snap to the other older three Gryffindors. "And you all should head back as well and work on your homework. If your grades slip too much you'll be kicked from the team and the young Mr. Weasley will find himself in possession of a permanent spot."

"Right!" Fred and George reply with their normal energy before they gather the brooms and head back to the castle. Ace and Luffy follow behind, both filled with excitement. Wood lingers in the back with McGonagall, no doubt talking about the quidditch team.

"When did our little brother get so good on a broom, Forge?" George asks.

"I dunno, Gred," Fred replies. "When did he?"

Ace blinks, momentarily surprised. It hadn't occurred to him while in the air, but flying is strangely effortless now. He remembers that a month or so ago at the Burrow he was struggling just to maintain a steady flight. And now he's flying backwards with ease. Part of it certainly has to do with his other life; physical things always came to him easily back then. In this life, that wasn't the truth at all really. Before remembering, he always used to struggle to keep up with his older brothers. When he was eleven in the other timeline, he was beating up tigers, bears, and thugs daily. He feels incredibly weak by comparison. He knows though, that for whatever reason, people in this world just aren't as strong. At all. He was like that too before he remembered everything. Now Ace and his little brother are stronger than the average man in this age at the least. Considering their strength before, this is utterly pitiful, but what's important is that they have the capacity to get strong again. Their Devil Fruits probably help with that too.

"I trained extra over the summer," Ace says in reply.

"Oh but why hide it from us?" George asks.

"Why would ickle-Ronniekins do that?"

"Maybe because you two gits would tease me about it." Ace smiles lightly, hoping to sluff the discussion. Luffy seems to understand because he picks up his pace a little and walks backwards, facing them.

"This is so cool!" Luffy exclaims with stars in his eyes. "We get to go flying on Saturday too! And if a Chaser gets hurt, then you can play the Saturday after!"

"We probably shouldn't say stuff like that," Ace replies with a little amusement. "Did you know though that this makes you the youngest Seeker in the century?"

"Another title to add to the collection," Fred says. "The-Youngest-Seeker-of-the-Century-That-Lived."

George laughs, and Ace rolls his eyes.

"That's cool. I'm hungry. When's dinner, Ace?"

"Like you haven't got it memorized," Ace replies.

"Ace?" George asks curiously and Ace's eyes widen. He completely missed his brother's thoughtless use of his name.

Unlike his brother, Luffy remains completely calm. "Ace, 'cause Ron is like an ace pilot in those cool fighter planes in the wars."

Luffy receives a blank look for his trouble from all of them. "It's a muggle thing."

Ace is a little uncertain but both Fred and George seem to buy it. Considering that Luffy hadn't looked to the side and whistled terribly, he must be telling the truth and it's a real thing. Huh. What a clever cover from his brother.

"Ace pilot?" Fred asks.

"To go that far-" George starts.

"-might be _too_ far."

"Let's see how the first practice goes."

Ace ignores them. Not even the slight worry he feels about the first game can put a damper on his afternoon. It was... perfect.

* * *

"It isn't fair," Ace complains, sitting down on his bed. The room is empty aside from Ace and Luffy, and he takes advantage of it to talk frankly.

"Eh?" Luffy asks, putting on a new set of robes. The other pair were destroyed by the muddy ground of the practice pitch. The Saturday afternoon had been humid, preluding the coming winter.

"You can use my name all you want now, but I can't get away with Luffy." Ace admits that maybe he's pouting the tiniest bit. Calling Ace by his real name all the time likely makes a few people blink, but it's just one more eccentricity to add to Luffy's already vast collection, nothing too bizarre. "Unless there's another muggle thing that uses 'Luffy.'"

"Nope!" Luffy chirps in reply.

"Harry... it just doesn't fit you right," Ace murmurs before shaking his head. "I'll figure something out eventually."

"Okay. But do it later. We have dinner now! It's the Halloween feast!" Luffy tugs on Ace's sleeves and leads him to the door. "I wanna see Hagrid's pumpkins!"

The groundskeeper has indeed been growing monstrous pumpkins for this very occasion, much to Luffy's delight.

"I'm coming, I'm coming."

Ace and Luffy walk through the hallways, filling the time with idle chatter. They're early, as ever, and there are very few people in the Great Hall, despite that it's the Halloween feast. Hermione is one of the early birds though, mechanically eating while pouring over a large tome. After taking a good few minutes to ooh and ahh at the decorations (especially the massive pumpkins), Luffy walks over and plops down right across from her. Immediately, he begins piling food onto his plate. He keeps his pace slow instead of imitating a black hole, which Ace is extremely grateful about. Breaking that particular habit was a hellish experience. Hermione looks up at them curiously before quickly returning to her book.

"Ahh, Ace, they have that awesome red sauce again!" Luffy cheers, grabbing the bowl and holding it before his brother. Ace smiles before accepting the marinara and adding a generous amount to his spaghetti.

"Ace?" Hermione asks, unable to curb her curiosity.

"Like an ace pilot," Luffy explains. "He's reaaaaallly good at flying!"

"Oh," she replies, and she's one of the few that has actually gotten the reference right off the bat so far. "I heard you're quite good as well. You made the quidditch team, right?"

"Yeah, it's pretty neat! Ace is a substitute Chaser so we get to go to practices together."

"I see," Hermione replies. She hesitates, and Ace can tell she wants to proceed but doesn't know how. Before he can soothe her social anxiety, an impermeable head appears in his brother's plate of roast beef and pork.

"Hello all," Nearly-Headless Nick greets, hovering through the table.

"Nick!" His brother smiles. The well-dressed ghost nods in greeting. They haven't had the chance to talk to him very much since their brief introduction on their first night, and Ace wonders how he died. He gets his answer when Hermione asks about his status of being 'nearly headless' and he proceeds to pop the majority of his head off.

Everyone who has come in during the past while and is sitting nearby makes sounds of disgust except for him and Luffy. His little brother has stars in his eyes.

"So cool!"

The ghost smiles at Luffy's enthusiasm.

"Hey, hey, ghost-guy, do you poop?"

Many of the people within earshot start choking on their food or drink, and since the great hall has filled considerably since they first sat down, it sets off a line of coughing and hacking. Ace just sighs a little.

"H-Harry!" Hermione cries, looking utterly mortified on his behalf. "You can't ask questions like that!"

"Why not? Haven't you ever wondered?" he asks innocently.

"That isn't the point! That isn't something someone asks, and especially not at the dinner table!" she snaps in reply. Many of the other Gryffindors look like they're on the same page.

"Don't you like learning?" Ace asks, coming to his brother's defense.

"Yes, but not things like this," she replies, crossly.

Luffy tilts his head. "Did you ever learn about anatomy in school?"

Hermione nods, a little reluctantly.

"So you learned about gross stuff too, right?" Luffy says, smiling again. "Knowledge is knowledge, even if it's gross! I wanted to know, so I asked."

She hesitates, and Ace knows that they've trumped her for the moment. Luffy turns his expectant eyes back towards the ghost who looks mildly entertained by everything that's happened. Ace is amused to see a few other people are looking curiously as well.

"I don't eat, so I do not," Nick answers.

"I could've told you that," Hermione says, regaining her poise. "He's intangible, so he can't touch anything, eat anything, or feel anything, so—"

"Don't be mean!" Luffy says, expression cross. "Have you ever asked a ghost those things, huh? 'Cause how can you know for sure if ghosts can or can't feel things?"

Nick glances towards Luffy curiously, and Ace would almost go so far as to say _happily._ Hermione looks blatantly stunned at being called out.

"Ne, can you feel things?" Luffy asks Nick intently.

Nick hums affirmatively. "When I pass through solid objects I do feel a bit of pressure. And I do still have emotions, young lady." With a nod of the head, he floats towards the enchanted ceiling before disappearing from sight.

"So cool!" Luffy says again, still grinning. Ace turns and sees Hermione looking upset and rather miserable.

"I— I'm going to the loo," she says, standing and grabbing her tome before quickly walking off. Ace feels a pang of guilt, but Luffy did nothing wrong.

"Aaaace," Luffy says.

"Hm?" Ace asks mid-bite of pasta.

"We need to go after her," his brother states.

Ace lowers his voice. "Luff, I think you're the last thing she wants to see right now."

"We can't leave her be. We need to be friends with her."

The freckled boy blinks. "I don't know if she really wants that. Besides, you can't make everyone your friend."

"Why not?" Luffy asks, and Ace pauses as he realizes that Luffy has likely never failed at such a task. That isn't really the point though.

"We shouldn't push her though," Ace says gently.

"I'm going after her now." Luffy stands up, and Ace grabs his sleeve, irked at being ignored. Luffy's expression is firm though.

"She's lonely, Ace. Can't you see it?"

And Ace can say no more, because he knows how that hurts. Instead he follows his little brother out the doors and towards where Ace remembers the girls' bathrooms being.

* * *

There are easily three dozen bathrooms in Hogwarts, but Ace and Luffy strike gold when they weave their way up to the second floor and hear the faint sounds of crying.

"Hermit?" his brother calls into the second floor girls' bathroom.

There's a hitch in the sobs, so Ace knows they're probably in the right place.

"Can you come out?" Ace tries. "We want to talk."

"Go away!"

Ace hesitates, uncertain what to do now. Luffy has no such qualm. He opens the door and walks right in. There's a screech from Hermione.

"Luffy!" Ace scolds, going in after him. He finds his little brother kneeling in front of one of the stalls, head tilted downward.

"No boys in the girl's room!" Hermione cries, mortified.

"Luffy!" Ace flushes. He grabs his little brother's arm and starts pulling him back. "We're sorry for the intrusion!"

Luffy's arm extends past it's normal length, and Ace lets it go reflexively, utterly terrified. When he realizes that Hermione is thankfully behind the stall, he exhales in relief. Nonetheless, he goes up to his still crouched brother and smacks him on the head.

"Idiot!"

"What was that sound?" Hermione asks, nose stuffy. "It sounded like a rubber band."

Ace chooses to redirect the conversation. "Look, I'm sorry we came in here, but we really just want to talk to you."

"Why? So you can make fun of me?" she asks through sniffles.

"No, no. I never meant to do that, honestly. I was just worried you were ganging up on Luf—Harry. I wasn't thinking. I'm sorry."

There's a small pause before Ace hears the click of the stall door. Hermione opens the gap a couple inches, looking out at them speculatively before fully stepping out.

"I— I'm sorry if it seemed like I was attacking Harry," she manages, drying her eyes. "I just thought he was being rude and inappropriate."

"That's him," Ace gives her an encouraging smile.

"That's me." Luffy nods. "I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. I'm sorry."

His words earn them a watery half-smile from Hermione.

"Will you come down with us?" Ace invites.

Hermione chews her lip uncertainly.

"What is it?" he asks

"Will you help me apologize to Nick?" Hermione asks, turning to Luffy. He smiles widely.

"Of course!"

Ace thinks maybe he understands now what Luffy sees in Hermione, why out of all the insecure first years, he's picked her.

"By the way, Ron, why do you keep calling Harry, Luffy?"

Ace barely resists the urge to facepalm as Luffy laughs.

"It's an, er, inside joke," Ace manages, feeling completely stupid for his slip-ups. Thankfully Hermione leaves the topic well enough alone, and gives them both encouraging shoves out of the girl's bathrooms before someone stumbles upon them on accident. Everyone is likely still at the feast, but Ace is more than glad to leave.

"Give me a second to clean up," she says, giving them one last shove. Ace and Luffy end up back outside the bathrooms.

"I hope she hurries. There might be time for des—" Luffy cuts his excitable sentence off and makes a short sound of amazement.

"Harry?" Ace asks with a furrowed brow. His brother points further down the hall. Ace blanches as he sees an honest to goodness ten-foot troll slowly turning the corner. He and his brother meet eyes. Luffy's expression is pleading, and Ace sighs.

"No powers," Ace warns. Luffy lets out a giggle of delight.

"Don't need 'em!" Luffy runs forward, and, of course, meets the troll with a firm gum-gum-pistol to the face. The troll goes spiraling back, thumping loudly into the stone walls of the castle. Ace isn't about to let his brother have all the fun, though, so he races forward and knocks the dazed troll around the floor a little more.

In five minutes they have the troll knocked out, and Ace is scolding Luffy for using his powers while his little brother is wondering aloud whether it's safe to eat troll meat or not. This is the scene that greets Hermione when she exits the girl's room.

"Is that a troll?!" She gasps and approaches with extreme caution. "What happened?"

Ace winces inwardly. He hadn't really been thinking too much about how he and Luffy would explain this. He was mostly excited to test out his strength against something other than the massive spiders in the forest.

"We knocked it out," Ace says lamely.

"I gathered that much," Hermione says dryly as she begins examining the rapidly bruising creature.

"Na, Hermione, are trolls edible?" Luffy asks.

Hermione blanches, but before she has time to question further, a group of footsteps approach. McGonagall, Quirrell, and Snape all turn the corner. As McGonagall sees them standing idly beside the unconscious troll, she clutches her chest and exhales sharply.

" _What_ are you doing?!" she demands, stalking up to them. Her sharp eyes run over them, the troll, and then back to them twice before narrowing. "Get away from there."

Hermione, Ace, and Luffy obediently come forward, avoiding eye-contact with their house head.

"Care to explain _why_ you aren't with the other students?" She taps her foot.

"I—"

"It's my fault, Professor."

Ace blinks and turns to Hermione, who slowly begins taking the blame onto herself, and successfully screws the rules she so loves in the process. She's doing it just to be their friend... Ace thinks she maybe understands friendship a little better now. That or she suffers under peer-pressure.

Either way, he finds her incredibly brave for her actions, and after McGonagall stalks away, he goes up next to her and nudges her shoulder with his own. Her eyes, filling with ashamed tears from the scolding, blink. Luffy claims her hand while she isn't paying attention, and the trio walk away from the incapacitated troll bearing smiles.

* * *

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 **So yeah, now they're together again. If you skimmed the note on top, I'm clarifying again that there will be other characters in this. Just be patient.**

 **I should also say that the first book will likely be the only book to follow the main plot closely. Everything after will be twisted quite differently somehow. Not dissimilar to my other large OP fic.**

 **Thanks for reading and if you have a spare moment, a review is always nice to read.**


	4. l: Sometimes, this is just too Similar

**Hello.** **Thanks for reading!**

 **A deep bow of appreciation to the you lovely reviewers! Ender the multiverse Detective, RedHeadsRock1010 FireD . Rion, Firebird0315, River king, Kanda Yuuki, WritterKillsReader, thunder18, Guest (8/17/16), DanielHimura, The Keeper of Worlds, theanimejunkie24, draco7347, BasilSing, AzureLazuli, and Guest (8/24/16)!**

 **It's so to see people reading this and hearing everyone's thoughts. I appreciate every word.**

 **Another round of applause to my beta, breather.**

 **NOTE: Luffy and Ace both died at Marineford, in case that wasn't totally clear. Ace didn't get their in time, so Akainu was close enough that he skewered Luffy and Ace at the same time. Also, you know, PTSD is hard, I apologize for the over-dramatics at times, but I think they're younger and less emotionally stable in this fic.**

* * *

 _Chapter 4: Sometimes, this is just too Similar_

* * *

The first quidditch game of the season is on a chilly mid-November afternoon. Ace and Hermione both travel to the pitch, chattering excitably about the upcoming game. Luffy's already on the pitch warming up, and Ace just can't wait to see his little brother beat out the other seeker.

Since Halloween, Hermione's been a fixture in the two brothers' lives, something Ace is grateful for and exasperated by in turn. She manages to get both Ace and Luffy to visit the library at least once a day to get all their work done, something Ace sheepishly admits to skipping out on every now and then. Neither he nor Luffy possesses the will to put off exploring the forbidden forest to do homework instead, but Hermione sits them down with stern words and won't let them leave until they've both turned over their essays for her to check. His mother will probably be very happy when she gets Ace's report card over the summer, and Ace is sure Luffy's aunt and uncle will feel the same.

Unfortunately, the sacrificed time comes from their exercise regime, which Ace is rather sour about. He and Luffy are finally nearing the strength they were at this age the first time around and Ace is eager to catch up. He knows that in this world, it's freakishly strong, but for them it's still pitiful... but it isn't like they can bring Hermione along with them to go play in the forbidden forest. They may have broken her more anal opinions on the rules, but they haven't gotten her quite to their level yet. Ace remains optimistic. If anyone can wear her down, it's Luffy. So far, they've had to cut down their visits to the woods to every other day, and once a day on the weekends. It eats Ace up, but he isn't going to sluff Hermione like that. She's still sensitive; her occasional insistent, almost bossy manner is only tempered by her shyness and uncertainty. Ace will wager that she's never had friends before, something he empathizes with a great deal.

One large point in her favor is that she seems to be slowly adjusting to Luffy. Hermione tends to take what he says less seriously, and ignore the bluntness of his speech. And, on good days, she'll end up laughing almost as much as Luffy does, which says something.

As they walk up the balconies to reach the standing area, they run into Neville, Seamus, and Dean, all of whom are burrowed deep into their gold and crimson scarves. They each grant Ace and Hermione a hello and a short wave which the other pair return. After chatting a little while longer, the players finally burst into the air, taking their positions. Ace snatches Hermione's binoculars and scans the air until he finds his little brother floating in the position Wood drilled into him (Luffy enjoys wandering as he waits for the play to start, a habit Ace and Wood are still trying to break).

The whistle blows and Luffy shoots further up into the air, then promptly crosses his ankles around the broom and slides off the side to hang beneath it, hands free and crossed over his chest. As he floats idly by, only gripping with his ankles, Ace hears gasps and cries from every inch of the arena, including from Hermione and the other three Gryffindors.

"Don't worry about it," Ace assures them. "He does this all the time."

More gasps fill the air as the broom starts to move left, giving Luffy a better view.

"I-I guess I know why McGonagall picked him." Neville stutters a little.

"He's the best." Ace grins, admittedly proud of his little brother. The degree of concentration Luffy gives the game is impressive to Ace, an obvious sign of how much Luffy enjoys the sport.

And then, with a suddenness that startles much of the crowd, Luffy nimbly swings back on top of his broom and darts towards the sandy area around the Gryffindor goal posts. Once more, Ace grabs the binoculars from Hermione's hands and watches after his brother. Sure enough, Ace spies glints of gold dashing ahead of his brother. Hermione snatches the binoculars back from his hands with a reproachful look that Ace just shrugs off, unrepentant.

The other seeker catches on to Luffy's find, but it's too late, Luffy's already caught the snitch. The arena breaks out into cheers and Ace is shouting louder than them all. That's his little brother! Before Luffy can land though, his broom jerks suddenly in the air.

Ace can almost hear the collective intake of breath as his brother is flung off the broom, leaving him with only one hand gripping the bucking wood. Ace's heart leaps into his throat; as much as he knows Luffy is capable of maintaining a grip under even greater duress, it's still terrifying to see his body swinging violently back and forth so high in the air.

"It's an incantation!" Hermione quickly puzzles out before pulling up her binoculars once more. Ace begins looking around frantically to see if anyone nearby is casting. Hermione lets out a small gasp at something she sees, and Ace pulls them from her hand and looks in the same direction. It's the faculty box, and looking closer he sees Snape muttering! And behind him, there's Quirrell clutching his hands together and chanting to himself as well. Ace's blood boils.

"I'll take care of it," Hermione quickly says, but Ace stops her with a hand. Thinking fast, he pulls out his wand and points it towards the faculty box, feigning a spell. With a single thought, heat gathers on Quirrell's robes before bursting into flames. Through the binoculars, Ace sees both Quirrell and Snape leap to their feet in panic at the sudden blaze, their concentration utterly broken. Ace doesn't care about them though. His eyes shoot back to his brother, whose flight has thankfully settled down enough for him to land.

Ace pulls the binoculars down and exhales in relief.

"That was amazing, Ron!" Hermione utters.

"I didn't know you knew spells so powerful!" Neville adds in awe.

"You've been holding back, mate," Seamus says, looking impressed.

"I've always been good with fire spells," Ace murmurs in reply. He's more interested in making sure his brother is alright, and investigating the suspicious behavior of the two professors.

* * *

"Aaaccceee," Luffy whines as his brother checks him over for the third time. "I'm fine!"

Hermione, Ace, and Luffy are standing on the edges of the pitch. Almost everyone else has headed back already.

Ace ignores the younger boy and checks him over a fourth time. "Hermione, do you know a spell to check for residual incantations?"

"Uhm." She pauses for a second before hesitantly lifting her wand. "Incantatum... finites?"

Nothing happens, and Ace doesn't know if it's a sign that the spell went awry, or that there's nothing wrong.

"Aceeee," Luffy whines again. "Leave it alone."

"You could have died up there, Luffy. That enchantment could have been any kind of dangerous spell!" Ace finally snaps. And it's _still_ too close

— _out of Ace's reach_

 _dying before his eyes_

 _alone—_

"Ace." Luffy pulls him in for a hug, shaking the dark thoughts from Ace's mind. The older boy focuses on the very realness of his brother and tries to ignore the impending reality. He meets Hermione's eyes over his brother's shoulders, and she looks sympathetic, if awkward. He knows that they probably disconcert her with their intensity at times, but Ace still hasn't thought of a sufficient way to explain the pair's relationship. He steps back with a sigh.

"Be more careful next time," Ace finally says.

"Okay!" Luffy chirps, probably not meaning it. Ace can't hold his brother to it.

"Harry!"

The three turn around and see the large Groundskeeper hurriedly walking towards them, face lit up in a great bushy smile.

"Hagrid!" Luffy grins widely.

"Ron, Hermione," he greets as he walks up to them.

"Hello Hagrid," Hermione replies, while Ace just nods. He's still trying to gain his footing back.

"We best head back to the castle. There's a right nip in the air," Hagrid says, shepherding the trio towards the stony edifice.

"Did you see me catch the snitch?!" Luffy asks excitably. He chatters on for a few moments, much to the large man's amusement.

"I'm glad you're okay, Harry," Hagrid gets in when Luffy takes a breath.

"Of course!" Luffy laughs.

"Did they catch Snape or Quirrell?" Ace asks.

"Catch? What're you on about?"

"For jinxing the broom," Hermione puts in.

"You think that Quirell and Snape were jinxing the broom?!" Hagrid stares at them incredulously. "Why on earth would you think that?"

"They were both muttering."

"I don't know about that..."

Ace meets the large man's eyes head on and doesn't back off until Hagrid looks away.

After a pause, the oldest asks, "What on earth makes you think they'd try and kill a student?"

Ace's mind races until he comes across a likely solution.

"Maybe they know we found the three-headed dog," Ace shoots back.

"Fluffy?! You found Fluffy?!"

"What three-headed dog?" Hermione asks, looking between the adult and Ace curiously.

"There's this awesome dog on the third floor! He's pretty playful!" Luffy laughs and Ace wants to roll his eyes. After they beat the creature up together, it was plenty kind to them. Before? Not so much. Ace knows that the dog is guarding something, and he thinks maybe the time has come for him and Luffy to explore it.

"I'm glad he didn't hurt you," Hagrid says, miffed, "But that third floor corridor is forbidden!"

"That's why they tried to kill us then. There's a secret they're trying to keep."

"Nonsense! And even if there were, that's none of your businesses! There are some things that're none of your business! And that third floor corridor is one of them. It's solely between Professor Dumbledore and Nicholas Flamel— urk." Hagrid cuts himself off.

"Nicholas Flamel?" Luffy tilts his head.

"Nothing. Nothing at all. I've said too much." Hagrid looks thoroughly harried now. "Promise me, you three, that you won't go near Fluffy again. There are things going on in this castle that you needn't know about!"

Ace, Luffy, and Hermione all exchange glances before nodding.

Ace probably means to keep the promise. Maybe. As they wave goodbye to the large groundskeeper, Hermione whispers.

"If both of them were muttering, then it's possible one of them was trying to save Harry."

"Or there was a third person and both of them were trying to save Harry," Ace hypothesizes. He doesn't believe it, but there's a possibility.

"Or they were both cursing him and their incantations kept crossing each other out," Hermione speaks in a small voice.

Ace sighs. Why can't his brother just stay out of trouble?

* * *

Ace wakes naturally on Christmas Morning to the dim, cloud blocked light. He sits up and glances around blearily, then grins a bit at the sight of Luffy beside him, thoroughly caught up in their shared blankets and looking quite like a caterpillar. Since only he and Luffy are left in the dorm, they took advantage of the opportunity and shared a bed, like they did their entire childhood. Luffy makes a soft sound of distress, and Ace weaves his hands through his brother's hair soothingly. Luffy's breathing smoothes out after a moment, and Ace sighs softly in relief. Though he and Luffy have yet to tip anyone off about the horrific images that haunt their minds, their sleep does tend to suffer. Having History of Magic usually makes up for the deficit. Sitting elbow to elbow in that class is enough to keep the nightmares away. Last night, Ace's dreams were exceptionally mild, which he gives to his brother's soothing presence.

As the reason for the lack of the other boys in the room filters into Ace's mind, he begins shaking his brother's shoulders.

"Luffy, wake up!"

His brother moans pitifully before opening his eyes.

"Ace?" he asks sluggishly.

"It's Christmas, Luffy!" Ace says, a tad breathless, because he suddenly remembers that he gets to celebrate this season with his brother for the first time, and he can't quite hide his excitement.

Luffy, on the other hand, doesn't seem to return the sentiment as vigorously. "Happy Christmas," he murmurs.

"Get up." Ace pulls his little brother up and unwinds the sheets from around him. "We have presents to open."

Luffy blinks and bites his lip, but Ace isn't having any of his Scroogish behavior. He drags his surprisingly reluctant little brother to the common room, where the duo finds an array of presents beneath the tree. Ace lets go of his brother and quickly digs through the pile until he finds the right one.

"Here, Lu." Ace passes the wrapped package to his brother who only barely catches it.

"I have presents?" Luffy asks slowly.

"Yeah, plenty!" Ace notes happily as he looks at the other tags.

"I have presents!" Luffy crows this time, and Ace's smile turns soft. Because he knows how Luffy feels. The sudden realization that they have presents, that they have family that cares for them, that they aren't alone anymore, is still a staggering one. It takes moments like this one to remind Ace of the stunning reality of their new lives.

Luffy quickly tears off the wrapping, and his eyes light up with joy at the sight of the homemade sweater. Ace finds a similarly shaped package and unwraps his own sweater. The pair pull them over their heads as one, grinning like absolute loons.

"Mum made you one too," Ace says, and Luffy laughs in delight. Ace soaks up the look on his brother's face, so incredibly glad he wrote to his mother and bugged her about it.

Sheepishly, Ace remembers how irritated he used to be before remembering his other life whenever he received a sweater each Christmas from his mother when he really wanted Chudley Cannon merchandise. Now, he's so incredibly happy to have this handmade gift pulled around him.

Luffy quickly plows through the rest of his presents. The vast majority of which is food. It's obvious that, despite having only known him a short while, their friends get Luffy pretty well. Luffy and Ace eat the chocolate clusters and the homemade cakes they both get from Hagrid as they explore the rest of their gifts. Hermione gave Luffy a broom maintenance kit, which Luffy oohs and ahhs at for several minutes. Ace himself receives a book about fire incantations from their third friend (which, while he'll never need it, really touches his heart). Ace is halfway through a box of Bertie Botts when Luffy starts opening a card attached to a brown parcel.

Whatever it says makes Luffy frown, and he tosses it to the side with their combined remains of wrapping paper. Ace opens his mouth to ask about it, when Luffy rips the parcel open. Shimmering fabric spills from the brown paper, pooling in Luffy's lap. Ace's jaw drops. Because he knows what that is.

"That's an invisibility cloak!"

Luffy tilts his head. "What's that?"

"It's exactly what it sounds like! It makes the wearer invisible."

Luffy quickly wraps it around his body. His bottom half completely disappears, much to his delight, and Ace is nearly breathless with the same as all the possibilities fill his mind.

"So cool!" he cries.

"You know what we're doing?" Ace asks with a grin.

"Going to visit Fluffy!"

"No, we're going to the library," Ace corrects.

"Whaaaa?" Luffy exclaims. "Why?"

"So we can find out about Nicholas Flamel. Remember, Hermione mentioned there were books in the restricted section?"

"Mmmmm. Nope!"

Ace doesn't know what he was expecting.

"Well she did, and that's where we're going."

"Can we visit Fluffy afterwards?" Luffy asks.

"You bet! But let's wait until night falls. Too many professors are still here to go during the day."

"Awesome!" Luffy grins widely, shifting his new cloak to his shoulders, and they spend the rest of the morning playing the best game of hide-and-seek Ace has had in a long time.

* * *

Luffy snores loudly on the table in the library, eliciting several glares from the other students studying. Sitting beside him, Ace stares idly out the library window. The snow is beginning to melt, and the promise of spring is setting in, but Ace can't seem to concentrate on that. His mind is still caught on the Mirror of Erised that Luffy and he came across. Ace saw his entire family, Weasleys, Whitebeards, Dadan and the bandits, Makino, Luffy, and _Sabo_ — everyone. Even Whitebeard himself, who had died in the war. Though Ace couldn't see it, Luffy apparently saw something very similar, finding all of his nakama waiting for him to come back to the ship and go on many adventures with them...

Ace sighs. Neither image was real, and coping with that had taken them several hours. Ace never realized how much he missed his original world until he saw the _Moby Dick_ again, floating on the cerulean Grand Line sea. Ace moves closer to his brother. Because he knows that's the one thing that makes this world both real, and worthwhile. Because in their world, Luffy is dead, and Ace could never cope with that.

His thoughts are interrupted by Hermione slamming a heavy tome onto the table. Luffy snorts before blearily opening his eyes.

"I still can't believe you couldn't find anything in the restricted section," she says as she begins pouring through the book.

"The kitty found us," Luffy murmurs, rubbing his eyes which emphasizes the dark circles below them. Their nightmares have come back full force since they saw their families. Even History of Magic isn't enough to cover that deficit. Ace rubs his little brother's back.

"Mrs. Norris," Ace deciphers.

"Well, luckily for you, I remembered where I'd heard of Nicholas Flamel before."

"Lucky for us?" Ace murmurs under his breath.

Hermione ignores him. Instead, she reads a passage aloud. "Nicholas Flamel is a great alchemist, and also the only one to possess a Sorcerer's Stone!" she finishes triumphantly.

Ace and Luffy aren't impressed.

"The Sorcerer's Stone?" Ace asks.

"What's the big deal with the saucery stone?" Luffy wonders, tilting his head.

" _Sorcerer's_ Stone," Hermione corrects. "And it can make any metal into gold and create an elixir of life. The drinker will then become immortal!"

"That's cool," Luffy says mildly.

"Don't you get it? _That's_ what Hagrid was trying to avoid saying!" Hermione presses.

Realization dawns on Ace. "That's probably what Fluffy's guarding."

"Precisely!" Hermione confirms.

"You know what this means?" Ace asks excitedly.

"We're going to investigate the mystery door?" Luffy echoes the enthusiasm.

"Yep!"

"What?!" Hermione cries. The librarian practically apparates behind them she appears so suddenly. With a single gesture, the trio are kicked out of the library for being too noisy, much to Hermione's mortification and Ace's and Luffy's disinterest. The halls are mostly empty as they trudge back to the common room, but Hermione furtively whispers to them.

"We are _not_ going to the trap door!"

"You're right, _we_ are not. You're going to stay here," Ace says decisively before gesturing to his brother. " _We_ are going to explore the trap door."

"No way I'm letting you do that! We need to tell an adult, that's what we need to do." Hermione nods determinedly.

"Why? They aren't going to believe us if we say Snape and/or Quirrell is trying to get immortality. Hagrid didn't, and they were jinxing Harry right before his eyes!" Ace points out realistically.

"That's it! Hagrid! We can talk to Hagrid!"

"Or not. I just went over how he doesn't believe us."

Hermione pauses. "Maybe Dumbledore then?"

"If we can't convince Hagrid, who's our friend, what makes you think we can convince the headmaster?" Ace says. "We're going to Fluffy."

"What's this I hear about 'Fluffy?'" a smooth voice asks from the side.

Ace, Hermione, and Luffy all start before slowly turning. Sure enough, they find Professor Snape leaning against the wall, looking at them perceptively.

"Just a pet name for my owl," Luffy says, stepping forward. His eyes are perfectly blank, and Snape stares at them a few moments before turning his nose up.

"Children had best keep out of business that doesn't concern them. Ten points from Gryffindor for loitering." With those final words he sweeps away, black cloak trailing after.

"Well. There goes the element of surprise." Ace rubs his forehead.

"We need to go tonight," Luffy pushes. Ace nods in complete agreement. The pair then turns to Hermione.

"You aren't going to tell on us, are you?"

Hermione bites her lip. "No... I won't. But I'm coming with."

"No way," Ace counters. "It's too dangerous."

"You think you and Harry are better wizards than I am?" She manages to sound haughty and hurt at the same time.

This makes the oldest boy pause, because she does have a point. While he was thinking in terms of sheer brute strength, it's possible they might run into something magical that they need help with. She's a much better witch than they are. Reviewing his options, he realizes there really is no contest. The risk is worth it, he decides.

"No, I don't. You can come along but you have to let me and Lu— Harry take the lead." He honestly doesn't know why he bothers correcting himself.

She looks irritated and nervous but nods anyways.

Ace exhales. "Tonight then, we meet in the common room. We'll take the invisibility cloak."

Luffy and Hermione both nod. Ace takes a deep breath and wishes the ominous feeling hanging over him would just disappear.

* * *

The trio quickly and quietly makes their way through the hallways beneath the cover of the invisibility cloak until they reach Fluffy's room on the third floor. Hermione undoes the door with a quick _alohamora_ and they're in. Ace blinks when he hears the soft, gentle sounds of a harp playing. Looking to the side he finds the enchanted instrument playing on its own.

"Someone's been here already," he murmurs.

"Shhh!" Hermione hisses, pointing towards the sleeping dog. Ace is about to tell her there's no point when Luffy cries,

"Fluffy!"

The three-headed dog startles awake and lets out a loud growl, making Hermione let out a squeak of fear. Ace places a calming hand on her shoulder and lets his brother take care of it.

As Fluffy orients himself and finally sets eyes on Luffy and Ace, he backpedals into the wall.

"Whaaa? Don't be like that," Luffy beseeches. "Come play with me a little."

All three heads shake in negation.

"Please," Luffy wheedles.

Meanwhile, Hermione's jaw has dropped as she stares in dumb fascination at Luffy's interaction with the dog.

"What did you do to it?" she asks Ace, eyes still glued to the creature.

"Luffy plays kind of rough sometimes." Most of the time. All of the time. But that isn't the point.

" _What?!"_ Hermione hisses. The freckled boy deigns not to answer. Instead he turns to Luffy who is trying in vain to coerce Fluffy from the far corner of the room he's pressed up against.

"Luffy, we don't have time to play. C'mon," Ace gestures. Luffy pouts but waves goodbye to Fluffy and goes to the trapdoor which Ace quickly wedges open. The older boy looks down and sees a black... something. It doesn't look especially dangerous, and even if it is, Ace and Luffy can definitely handle it.

"Geronimo," Ace utters before dropping into the pit, grunting as he lands in what feels like a bunch of weird vines. Luffy and Hermione are quick to follow. Ace means to stand up, but he finds his legs are restricted by the thick black tendrils.

"What the hell?!" he snaps, ripping his arm away from searching vine.

"It's Devil's Snare!" Hermione realizes quickly. "You have to relax! Stay still."

Ace groans. Staying still has never been Luffy's specialty. Even as he thinks this, he can hear the vines winding tighter and tighter around his squirming little brother.

"Any weaknesses, Hermione?" Ace asks, voice rising in pitch.

"Uhm, sunlight!" the witch says. "But I can't reach my wand!"

Ace smirks. At last. "Don't worry, I have this covered."

With a single thought, he fills the air with fire, sending it skirting up the vines and branches. There's an inhuman cry before every tendril rescinds and Hermione, Luffy, and Ace are all deposited on the floor below the writhing mass of vines. Safe and sound, Ace releases the flames as he rises.

"Alright?" he asks, helping a frozen Hermione off the ground.

Hermione stares at him with mute fascination. "You used nonverbal, wandless magic!"

"I'm good with fire spells, remember." Ace can't help but grin.

Before Hermione can voice the no-doubt _dozens_ of questions running around in her head, Luffy tilts his head and asks,

"Do you hear that?"

Ace perks up. "Sounds like... wings."

The area they're deposited in leads straight into a gray room, filled with over a hundred winged keys. A single shaft of light illuminates the area. In the center of the light there's a broom.

"Cool!" Luffy cries. Ace smiles as they pass through, reaching the door across from them. Hermione casts _alohamora_ but meets with very little success. She frowns and tries two more times, to no avail.

"I guess we have to use one of these keys." Ace squints up through the bright light.

"One of them's broken!" Luffy says, pointing at a key struggling to keep in the air. Looking closely at it, Ace finds one of the wings is bent out of shape.

"I guess I know what the broom's for." Ace looks towards his brother. "D'you mind if I take this, Luff?"

His brother shrugs so Ace walks forward and grabs the broom. Immediately, all the keys start pelting themselves at him. Reflexively, Ace activates his Devil's Fruit powers, making the keys go straight through him. He then remembers his audience. Letting out a groan, Ace leaves himself corporeal and fights with the keys to keep his vision clear so he can hunt down the crippled key.

So annoying.

* * *

Hermione picks up the small black potion vial among the veritable plethora before them. Of all the challenges they've faced, the potions riddle has to have been the hardest. The Devil's Snare was a snap. Catching the key was annoying. The chessboard was easy (Ace used to play chess with Marco all the time, and in this life Bill and Charlie challenge him regularly, and it's gratifying to know that he's apparently skilled enough to save their lives). But he was utterly useless when they faced the potions puzzle. In that moment Hermione truly shone. All the little annoyances that came with keeping their full power a secret are worth it in the end.

"This should be the right one," she says, trying to put certainty in her tone.

"Right!" Luffy says with a wide smile. He reaches out to take the vial, only for her to pull it away.

"It's most likely the right one." Hermione hesitates, and Ace can practically see her running through the entirety of the riddle again. She extends it slowly again, before snapping it back just as Luffy reaches out.

"Then again, I maybe misunderstood—"

Luffy snatches the bottle quickly from her hands.

"Hey!" she exclaims, looking irritable and afraid.

"I trust you!" Luffy says, smile filled with belief. Ace watched Hermione's stunned expression, knowing well the feeling of being on the receiving end of the absolute faith only Luffy is capable of.

"O-okay."

Without another word, Luffy knocks the vial back, drinking the entire thing. As he sets the vial down, Ace sees determination and the promise of punishment in his brother's eyes. It gets Ace raring to go.

"You should probably head back up," Luffy suggests, eyes glued to the dark fire anticipatorily.

"It's a good idea," Ace seconds. "I think you should be able to get back to the Devil's Snare on your own, at least."

Hermione blinks. "You're coming with me, aren't you, Ron?"

Ace shakes his head.

"But Harry drank the entire potion!"

"I'm good with fire spells, remember? Don't worry about me."

Hermione hesitates for a few seconds before nodding. "Be safe, please."

The fear and uncertainty in her eyes reminds Ace of her all-too-young age. She's only eleven... but she sure is something.

"We will," Luffy avows before he starts walking towards the fire. Ace follows, sparing one last glance back at Hermione before being encased in flames.

* * *

The pair step out from the fire and find themselves in a round room, surrounded by flames. In the very center, there is the familiar Mirror of Erised, and in front of it—

"Quirrell!" Ace admits to being a tad surprised. He was banking on Snape. Of course, the second man could still be lurking around. A quick scan makes it appear as though it's only the three of them, but Ace doesn't lower his guard just yet. He has no idea what high level magic is capable of.

"How did _you_ get in?" Quirrell tilts his head curiously at Ace.

"Magic," Ace says derisively. "Where's the stone?"

" _Kill the spare_ ," comes a high, rasping voice. Ace whips around, searching for the owner of the hiss, but just finds Luffy.

The next thing he knows, his little brother is pulling him down and out of the way of a chilling blast of green light. Ace knows what that spell is. Everyone knows about the haunting green color of the Avada Kadava curse. His eyes are wide as he reexamines the professor he so easily played off as being a stuttering mess.

Luffy suddenly lets out a small yelp of pain and clutches his forehead.

"Luffy!" Ace cries, shaking off his shock before grabbing his brother's shoulders. "What's wrong? What's he doing?"

"It's my scar... it really hurts." Luffy grits his teeth and pulls himself straight up. Ace knows he must be in a significant amount of pain if it made him cry out, but also knows that his brother won't be making such a sound again.

"Does it burn, boy?" the mystery voice asks.

"What the hell are you doing to him?" Ace demands, whipping around to face Quirrell again.

"What I'm doing to him now is _nothing_ compared to what he's done to me!" the voice shouts. "Let me see him!"

"But M-Master, your strength—"

"Now!"

Quirrell hesitates before his hands rise to his turban. Very, very slowly he unwinds the purple fabric and turns his back on them. Ace is too rapt to take advantage of the lowered guard, and then realizes that no, it's not lowered at all.

Ace takes a sharp inhale of breath. On the back of Quirrell's head is perhaps one of the most disgustingly malformed faces Ace has ever seen, and its glaring blood red eyes are glued to Luffy.

Ace glances to the side and sees his brother furrowing his brow with confusion.

"Who're you?" Luffy asks bluntly.

Quirrell jerks around to stare at them, face red with rage. "He's Lord Voldemort! The strongest wizard of all time! My Master, my liege he—"

"Enough," interrupts the second voice, and it's him, Merlin, it's _He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named_.

The gravity of the situation slowly hits Ace and he steps in front of his brother. Because holy shit. You-Know-Who is standing in front of them— relatively speaking. They are way in over their heads. All the stories Fred and George used to tell him as a child to frighten him come back suddenly and with the force of a battering ram. He swallows, throat dry. He doesn't have time to be weak though, not while Luffy is in so much danger.

"I'm guessing you're the one who wants the Sorcerer's Stone?" Ace grits out, trying to figure out a way to get his brother out of here.

"The stone is for my Master's revival," Quirrell replies, sweeping back around to face them grandly.

"What about Snape?" Luffy asks.

"Snape had no role to play in this, but for being a wretched thorn in my side," Quirrell answers, sneering. "I suppose he must have seemed so suspicious to your childish minds with his hatred of Harry, but that is the fault of his father, the bane of Snape's schoolboy existence. No, he never wanted him dead; in fact Snape is to blame for Harry yet breathing here."

As Quirrell explains the intricacies of his and Snape's interactions, Ace takes a step back towards his brother, and mutters to him lowly.

"Luffy, we've got to get out of here." Ace pauses as he realizes that Luffy isn't paying attention in the slightest— his eyes are glued on the mirror, seeming entranced. Ace leans back further to jostle his brother. Now is not the time to be thinking about the _Thousand Sunny_ and all his friends!

"The boy," He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named hisses, cutting his subordinate off. Quirrell pulls up his wand, and with a single flick, Ace is sent skidding away from his brother and into the fire pit. He crashes into stone wall, knocking the breath clean out of him. He sits up, gasping, immediately searching out the figure of his brother, who is standing beside He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, wrist in his grasp. He leaps to his feet, shaking the daze from his mind. With barely a thought, the fire bows to his command, flaring around his body.

He lunges forward, ready to put a flaming fist through Quirrell's head for daring to lay a hand on Luffy, only to find that the man's face already disintegrating. He lets the fire fade slightly and just runs towards his brother, who is frantically pressing his hands anywhere he can reach on Quirrell's skin. Ace can't explain why, but his brother's touch is acidic to the man, making him practically unravel before their eyes. Quirrell and He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named let out blood-curdling screams as their combined body turns into dust.

The fires surrounding the room die out, and the only sound left is Luffy's panting. Ace senses Luffy's collapse before it happens and catches his brother in a crouch before he can fall to the ground. Luffy's eyes are feverish, and Ace wishes he had the faintest idea of what happened, but he doesn't.

"Are you okay?" Ace asks calmly, covering the actual panic building in his chest.

"Mmm fine. Ace..." Luffy blinks for a moment before his lids slide shut. Ace stands, lifting his brother easily with him before dashing out the way they came. As he enters the room with the potions in them, he encounters three out of breath professors and one stern looking Dumbledore running his direction. Ace skids to a stop.

"Help! I don't know what happened to him, he just—"

Luffy's weight is lifted from his hands with a quick flick of the wand from Dumbledore. With a mumbled word, his brother and the headmaster both disapparate before his eyes. Ace stands there, stupefied by everything that's just happened.

"Rest easy, Mr. Weasley, he is safe now," McGonagall assures. "Now can you tell me _why_ exactly you three decided to come down here?" She isn't the only one curious. Snape is there, and Flitwick too, both looking impatient and stern.

"Hermione made it upstairs alright?" Ace exhales slightly. Considering the situation they were in, it doesn't surprise Ace that Hermione immediately ran to the professors. In fact, at this moment he's rather grateful. "That's good. Do you think Harry..."

"I have no question that Madam Pomfrey is looking him over as we speak. You should see her too," McGonagall says, running a speculative eye over his scraped and bruised body.

"I'm fine," he says. "I'm more worried about Harry. You-Know-Who was here, and—"

There's a cut off choked sound from the small Charms professor and Snape's sallow face is suddenly as white as a sheet. McGonagall's lips are pursed so tightly they lose their color.

"He was there, then?" Snape is the one who asks.

Ace nods slowly, fully understanding the gravity of the situation. "He was Quirrell— I mean, he was attached to Quirrell. The back of his head, underneath his turban."

"So he was here the entire time." Snape's teeth grit together angrily.

"Has he been there all year?" Flitwick wonders, pale faced. "He's gone though?"

"Yeah, Harry..." If Ace knew what his brother did, he'd tell them. As it is, he's in the dark.

"Come then, we must get Mr. Weasley to the Infirmary," McGonagall says, effectively cutting off any further speculation, and begins shepherding the group through the other rooms, towards the exit. "Unlike some people, I cannot apparate on this campus, so I'm afraid we must take the long way."

"I'm fine, really," Ace tries, though his head pounds.

"If you feel the need to sleep, one of us can carry you," McGonagall continues, completely unconvinced.

Ace winces. "Actually, Professor, I think I have a concussion, so sleep might not be such a good idea."

"A concussion does not constitute being fine!" McGonagall snaps. She takes a deep breath. "Honestly, you all are far too reckless. I meant what I said about giving people heart issues."

"Sorry," Ace gives the smallest of grins.

There's really no helping it.

* * *

Ace leans his head on one hand on the movable tray in the infirmary. He's waiting as patiently as he can for his little brother to wake up, but it's more agitating than anything else. Ace has already been debriefed, spinning an exhaustive tale of the bizarreness that has been his day. Sleep is high on Ace's list, but he can't do that until he at least sees his little brother open his eyes. The longer it takes, the more anxious Ace becomes, although he is loathe to show that nervousness, having fought tooth and nail to be allowed to stay in the room with Luffy. Madam Pomfrey, McGonagall, and Dumbledore, all tried their hands at convincing him to leave, to no avail. Eventually Madam Pomfrey had conceded with a slight sigh that maybe Ace should be kept overnight for observation, much to his relief. After their most recent brush with death, Ace has no interest in leaving his little brother alone if he can help it. Their list of near death incidents is growing again, despite the seemingly peaceful time they've been reborn into. Thankfully Luffy survived this one. Not like the last—

 _blood. so much blood covering Ace's front_

 _and as he lifts his eyes, he finds not all of it is his_

 _Luffy. Luffy. Lu—_

Ace is stirred from his thoughts by the sound of rustling blankets. He looks to his brother who has opened his eyes while Ace was spaced out and is now slowly trying to sit up.

"Luffy!" Ace rises in a rush.

"Hi."

Ace snaps and lightly smacks his brother over his head.

"Don't just say 'hi' after scaring me like that!"

"Sorry," he says, looking mildly apologetic.

Ace lets out a sigh. "How're you feeling?"

Luffy shrugs. "I feel okay. Are you alright?"

"Just a few scrapes," Ace says, showing his forearms, which are speckled with plasters. His face also bears a few white bandages. The keys did more damage than he initially thought, but he doubts he'll scar. Though his healing power isn't as impressive as it was back in their original world, Ace's constitution is better than most. He has an optimistic opinion that, like their strength, their healing powers will return with time too.

"And Hermionity?"

"Jeez, Luffy, you've known her for a whole year. Can you try a little harder to get her name right?" Ace asks with amusement.

"Isn't it Herminey?"

"Hermione."

"That's what I said. Hermit."

 _"Hermione_ made it up fine," Ace says, pressing on, exasperated. "She'll probably be in tomorrow to visit us."

"I hope she brings me something to eat." The beginnings of drool gather at the edges of Luffy's mouth. "We haven't had anything to eat since dinner!"

"It's only been a night. Right now it's breakfast, Lu."

"Way too long without food." Luffy rubs his stomach and sighs.

Ace tries to smother a yawn but is widely unsuccessful.

Luffy frowns at him. "You should sleep."

"I will... I just wanted to make sure you're okay," Ace says.

"I'm fine. He didn't really hurt me or anything." Luffy hesitates. "I have no idea what happened with Voldemort down there."

Ace fights back a reflexive flinch from Luffy's use of the name.

"Whatever it was, it saved our life."

Luffy's eyes go wide with sudden understanding. "Do you think he's allergic to rubber?"

And for the first time since the three of them went down the trapdoor, Ace laughs. Luffy soon joins in, and the taut knots settled so tightly in Ace's chest finally relax.

"I dunno, Luffy, maybe. You may have just discovered the weakness of the most evil wizard in the world," Ace says while rubbing his nose. "Maybe your rubber power isn't the lamest ever."

"It's like the time I beat up God!" Luffy chirps.

Ace pauses for a moment. "What?"

"God was on Skypiea, and I was fighting him and he tried to zap me with lightning, but it didn't work at all!" Luffy grins. "Rubber and lightning. I had no idea his weakness was rubber, but it was awesome. I beat the crap out of that god."

And that's when Ace reaches his fracture point, and complete exhaustion sets in. Everything that happened today (yesterday?) was all so unbelievable. Hearing Luffy beat up God? Less ridiculous than He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named living on the back of his Defense professor's head, but still a lot to swallow, so Ace shakes his head and rubs his brother's messy black hair.

"I'm going to bed. Tell me about your battle with God in the morning."

"Okay!" Luffy grins.

Ace moves to one of the other beds set up in the infirmary and flops onto it. In moments, he's in a pleasant sleep where he's surrounded only by the blue sea.

* * *

Ace walks carefully to the infirmary, keeping a firm grip on the small cake he's carefully hiding behind his back. It took a lot of convincing for his older twin brothers to agree and supply it, which Ace doesn't understand. The cake isn't even for him! It's for Luffy. The twins think it's a get-better-soon cake, but Ace has something different in mind.

Madam Pomfrey heads him off as he finally reaches the infirmary. He knows that he's been a bit of a hellion when it comes to seeing his brother (screw visiting hours! Ace visits him every night using the invisibility cloak), but that's no reason for her to regard him with such a shrewd expression.

"Hello Madam Pomfrey," he greets, trying for a charming smile.

"I thought I told you not to visit him again today." Her expression remains stern.

Ace opens his mouth to argue, but they're both cut off by the approach of Albus Dumbledore, who seems to have come from Luffy's bed. The headmaster smiles benignly at both of them before nodding at Ace.

"Young Mr. Weasley has something to give Harry," Dumbledore begins. "I think one exception wouldn't hurt."

"Headmaster." Madam Pomfrey sighs before gesturing Ace forward. He eagerly takes the opening, nodding his thanks towards the elderly wizard before approaching his little brother's curtained off bed. (They'd had to pull the curtains up when students of all ages came down with stomachaches and lightheadedness just to see Ace's little brother.)

Pulling back the curtain, he finds his little brother staring off into space, thinking heavily about something. Before Ace has the chance to grab his attention, Luffy perks straight up, sniffing the air.

"Did you bring me cake?!" he asks, eyes wide.

"Hello to you too." Ace grins and brings the cake from behind his back. He places the dessert on the movable tray, slapping his brother's reaching, hungry hands away. Ace pulls out a medium sized candle from his robe.

"Sorry, I couldn't find any of the small ones to put in the cake."

"Huh?"

"For your birthday cake, you idiot," Ace says, grinning at the confused expression on his brother's face.

"Today's my birthday?"

"May fifth," Ace says before glancing around. Seeing it's all clear, he pinches the wick and brings a small glowing flame to life. "Your birthday here is over summer break, isn't it? So I thought we could celebrate this one here."

"I get two birthdays!" Luffy crows happily.

"I don't know if I'll be able to convince my parents to let me come see you," Ace admits bitterly. The conversation on that front has been remarkably one-sided so far. He'll find a way. He _has_ to.

"Ace," Luffy says, grabbing his arm. Luffy's eyes are glowing with gratitude and soft happiness, and Ace can't help but smile in response.

"You're right; let's not worry about that now." Moving the candle closer to his brother, Ace grins. "Make a wish."

Luffy pauses and thinks for a long minute before letting out a large breath. The candle goes out, and Ace hopes his brother's wish comes true.

"Happy Birthday, Luffy."

* * *

 **.**

 **.**

 **.**

 **Ya'll probably didn't expect me to plow through the first book in four chapters. Whelp. I only write the sections I want to, and since I plan for seven books, if I took thirty chapters a book, we're looking at something long AF. Five to six a pop is better for me. The next book deviates further and is more interesting to read, I think.**

 **I need to thank my beta breather for the excellent Voldemort voice. They helped me shape it up~**

 **Review, if you like! I love reading them~**


	5. ll: Aaaaand We're Off to a Bad Start

**Hello**

 **Thanks for the wonderful reviews! Guest (08/24/16), hachinonana, Guest (8/24/16), Nike Scarlet, NinjaFoodLover, LoganAlexander, TracesOfFreedom, and Unicornninja14.** **A deep bow of appreciation for my repeat offenders(reviewers)! Cheers to; Kanda Yuuki, Ender the multiverse Detective, WriterKillsReader, The Keeper of Worlds, Guest 2 {2 reviews}, and FireD . Rion!**

 **I appreciate every word.**

 **I REPEAT: Luffy and Ace died at Marineford.**

 **Gracias to my beta, breather.**

* * *

 _Chapter 5: Aaaaand We're Off to a Bad Start_

* * *

 _Dear Luffy,_

 _I hope your summer's good so far. I know it's only been a week since we left Hogwarts, but I miss you. Fred and George are teasing me right now and calling a pansy for writing this, but they can just mind their own bloody business! Ah, they read that. I might be in trouble with Mum in a bit. Oops. Things at home are alright. I miss being able to do magic all the time. Being around my family again is pretty nice, though I'm worried I'll fall behind on our exercise routine. I'll do my best so we can have a proper match when we get back! You better not be slacking too._

 _Love,_

 _Ace_

* * *

 _Dear Luffy,_

 _I hate doing chores. You might call me a neat freak, but I'm nothing compared to my mother. She's like Makino— always cleaning all the time, except she makes me do a lot of the cleaning too. Which sucks. I put up with it as well as I can though. I miss the days when we could skip all the chores Dadan used to try and make us do and just go to the jungle or Grey Terminal._

 _It's still weird for me... having another family._

 _I hope you're doing well and aren't too bored living in the suburbs. What's it like living there? My home is pretty rural comparatively. It's large though, and I'm sure you'll love it when I can convince Mum to let you come over._

 _Love,_

 _Ace_

* * *

 _Dear Luffy,_

 _You're such a bad correspondent. I don't remember if you met Ginny after we left the train, but she's my little sister. She is obsessed with you. It's so fun to tease her about! Almost as fun as teasing you. Try and find a spare minute to write me back, alright?_

 _Love,_

 _Ace_

* * *

 _Dear Luffy,_

 _What the hell? It's been three and a half weeks, WHERE ARE YOU? If you don't get back to me in three days I'm coming to get you! And if I find out you just 'forgot' to respond, I'm gonna beat you into a pulp! WRITE BACK TO ME._

 _Love,_

 _Ace_

* * *

 _Luffy,_

 ** _I'm coming to get you right now._**

 _Ace_

After haphazardly signing his name, Ace leaps to his feet and ties the letter off on Errol who takes off into the night. He hurries into the hallway and takes the stairs two at a time, making his footfalls as quiet as possible. Truthfully, he isn't too concerned— his father snores like a foghorn. It's part of how Fred and George get away with as much as they do. Speaking of, as he slips out the front door, he meets the twins standing outside the house in the cool evening air, both chattering excitedly.

"There you are!" Fred exclaims.

"We were going to leave without you," George faux threatens.

"And rescue our little damsel ourselves."

"Shut up," Ace says, getting into their father's old car.

"Why aren't you more excited to be sharing this with us?" Fred asks mournfully, taking the driver's seat.

"We're practically inducting you into the illustrious family history of breaking rules," George adds in as the car starts and they lift off the ground.

"Two people does not a history make," Ace points out dryly. He'd probably be more amused, but he's mostly anxious about seeing his little brother again. Luffy hasn't been responding to any of the letters he and Hermione have sent him, and the silence is driving Ace up the wall. Luffy is often thoughtless, but Ace doesn't think he'd forget to respond to the seven letters Ace and Hermione have sent between the two of them. Probably not. If he _is_ just forgetting, Ace is going to beat his little brother into the dirt.

"So, where to, Ronnie-kins?" George asks, shaking Ace from his thoughts.

Ace pulls out the old map he'd grabbed from the den's cupboard for just this occasion. After smoothing it out, he instructs his brothers to fly lower so he can read the signs on the streets. He's ridiculously glad that their father thought to include an invisibility spell when he enchanted it to fly, because they'd be making a right fuss otherwise.

It takes a total of two hours and forty minutes of stilted directions for them to reach number four Privet Drive. As Fred slowly brings them in, Ace notices one of the windows has bars on it. His stomach sinks and an ominous feeling settles there.

"Go to that one," he says, pointing towards the barred window. His guess is right, as through the bright lights of the Ford Anglia, Ace makes out a small, dark-haired body sleeping fitfully under the covers. It's apparent that Ace isn't the only one who's been missing out on sleep this summer.

"Harry!" Ace hisses, rolling down the car window. He makes a gesture, and Fred lines them up sideways with the house. Leaning out the open car window, Ace raps on the glass between the bars. Luffy startles awake at the sound, then slowly gets out of bed and pads over to the window.

As his little brother steps fully into view, Ace hears George take a sharp breath while Fred utters, "Blimey."

Meanwhile, Ace feels the beginnings of fire stirring just below his skin.

Luffy, unaware of their tumultuous reactions, opens the window and grins widely at them.

"Ace came for me!" he chirps. And god, all Ace wants to do is hold his brother right now. That and feed him, because it looks like it's been a couple weeks since Luffy last had a meal. The actual amount of weight Luffy's lost is small— only because he never had that much to lose in the first place. Still, the little he's lost makes him look so much skinnier and weaker. His face is pale, and he's swaying a little where he stands. It makes Ace's blood boil.

"Have they been feeding you?!" Ace hisses.

"Ah." Luffy blinks slowly. "Sort of. It's a long story."

"Give me the rope," Ace orders shortly, and George obliges without a word. It's probably for the best, considering that if he didn't get the rope immediately, Ace would've gone at the bars with his bare hands— and Ace would have won that little confrontation. After quickly tying a sailor's hitch, Ace makes a short gesture to Fred, who puts his foot down on the gas. The bars come off with a horrid screeching sound of ripping metal. Luffy seems anxious about something, nervously glancing over his shoulder, but nothing happens. The minute the way is clear, Ace leaps over the gap, ignoring the short sounds of panic made by Fred and George. He takes his brother in with both hands, and hugs him as tightly as he dares. As he anticipated, Luffy's already bony body is more angular with the small amount of weight loss.

Stepping back, Ace is concerned to see his brother's gaze keeps losing focus, and his eye lids are only half open. Luffy seems to notice his drowsiness too because he rubs his eyes.

"Sorry, I dunno why I'm so tired. I've been sleeping all the time, recently."

 _Because the bastards are_ starving _him_ , Ace thinks, jaw clenched, but he doesn't comment aloud. What matters right now is getting his brother out of this horrible situation... But truthfully, it's only the sight of Luffy, pale and bony and in desperate need of immediate care, which keeps Ace from going and setting his aunt and uncle on fire.

"Where's your trunk?" he asks instead.

"In the stair's cupboard. My uncle took everything down there, except for Hedwig."

"Fred, George, can you come in here?" Ace requests. After putting the Anglia in neutral and leaving it idling, both twins enter the room.

"How're you doin', Harry?" George asks, trying to keep his tone light.

"I'm fine." Luffy grins, but it's noticeably less bright than it usually is.

Unsettled, Ace pushes forward. "His trunk and stuff is beneath the stairs, in the cupboard. Can you get it?"

George looks relieved to have something to do and nods. After trying the knob and realizing it's locked from the outside, the twins exchange looks and Ace nearly trembles with anger. They were treating his brother like some kind of prisoner! George pulls out an ordinary hairpin and picks the locks by hand, the way Ace used to as a pirate, and wonders where he learned it.

Fred grins and makes a short salute before they both disappear into the dark hallway.

"Why are you locked in here?" Ace asks, once the twins are gone.

"It's a long story," Luffy repeats.

"How _long_ have you been in here?"

"Two, maybe three weeks."

Heaving a pained sigh, Ace contents himself with brushing away his little brother's lank hair from his face.

"I won't push you now, but I want to hear about it later," Ace says firmly.

Luffy makes a small sound that could be either agreement or disagreement before saying, "I missed Ace."

"I missed you, Luffy," Ace says clutching his brother tight. "Why is it you always get in trouble when I'm not paying attention?" The question has no heat.

"Mmmm," Luffy murmurs tiredly, already about to slouch over. The hunger combined with the late hour is almost too much for Ace's little brother to take. Thankfully, the twins appear with Luffy's stuff only minutes later. After grabbing her cage and letting Hedwig out into the open air, they all pile into the Ford Anglia and take to the skies once more.

"See you next summer," Luffy murmurs blearily to the mess they left in his uncle and aunt's gardens. Fred and George both find this utterly hilarious and break out into fits of laughter, but Ace's thoughts are darker.

' _Not if I have a say,'_ he thinks to himself.

The drive back is much faster, which Ace is glad about, because they need to get food into his little brother immediately. The moment they land, Ace grabs Luffy, who's groggily oohing and ahhing at the Burrow, and drags him inside.

Ace places him firmly at the table and then flies to the cabinets, before hesitating. He knows from his past childhood that one shouldn't eat too heavily after a period of starving. Soup would be best but Ace has never been much of a cook, so that'll have to wait until his mother wakes up. Deciding to trust the strength and resilience of his brother's stomach, Ace settles on grabbing a loaf of bread and a large knife. He gets a plate and sits across from his brother. Fred and George also take seats at the table, watching with some amusement as Ace begins feeding his little brother, one slice at a time.

Luffy takes small bites of the bread and looks around their house in amazement. The charmed broom and knitting needles utterly entrance him. His eyes linger for a long time on the large clock that displays the locations of everyone in the family at any point in time. There are a lot of needles, Ace knows. He's still not fully adjusted to having such a large family.

"Hungry much?" Fred asks, gesturing to the leftover crumbs of the bread. George elbows him in the ribs, which saves Ace the trouble. He isn't in the mood for their humor right now.

"I'm full," Luffy announces as he swallows his last mouthful.

"You need to eat more," Ace says, brow knitting with worry. Luffy should be able to finish off ten of these, easily. He places a hand against his brother's forehead, checking for a fever.

"Cluck, Cluck, Mother-hen," Fred jibes. Ace turns and pins his older brother with one of his more intimidating glares. Fred actually freezes in surprise at the intensity of the look.

"Is this funny?" Ace asks coldly. "If we hadn't have gone and gotten him, he might've died!"

"But we did get him. Everything turned out alright, Ron," George says, awkwardly inserting himself between Fred and Ace.

"It almost didn't." His fist clenches.

"Ace..." Luffy's voice is soothing. "I'm okay, Ace. Really."

"But Harry, they were _starving_ you." Ace finally says it aloud. He shudders from the very thought—

 _dying alone_

 _out of Ace's reach and sight_

 _alone, which hurts more than being hit_

 ** _alone_** _—_

Luffy places a hand over Ace's chest, over his heart.

"I knew Ace would come and get me," Luffy says simply, smiling.

He's overwhelmed by the level of trust and faith Luffy grants him so easily. Because he doesn't deserve it— can't have done anything to deserve something this _good._

"Where _have_ you been!?"

Ace slowly turns from his brother to find the Weasley matriarch coming down the stairs, eyes a stormy promise of punishment.

"Well, uh—" Fred begins.

"No note! Empty beds! Car gone! Have you no care for my nerves?! I was out of my mind with worry!" Molly snaps.

"Look who turned up!" George grabs Luffy by the shoulder, placing the dark haired boy between their mother and him.

The ploy works. She immediately goes up to Luffy.

"My goodness, haven't they been feeding you?" she wonders aloud.

"No," Ace mutters mutinously.

"Sort of." Luffy gives the Weasley woman a grin anyways.

Molly Weasley blinks, opens her mouth, and closes it, before finally saying, "Well, let's fix that, then."

"Can you make him some soup, Mum?" Ace asks.

"Good idea, Ron. Why don't you get some bowls out? You two, go outside and get me some eggs." She gestures sharply to the twins with a wooden spoon. Both of them are eager to duck out of their mother's angry gaze.

She steers Luffy into a seat, which is probably for the best because he still hasn't gained his energy back. Mrs. Weasley does enough talking for the both of them, clucking around him making little comments about how thin he is as she cooks. In no time at all, she has a large pot of soup ready for Luffy, and a traditional, hearty breakfast for everyone else. Ace's mother luckily put meat into the stew, so Luffy takes to it eagerly— as eagerly as his sluggish body allows, anyway.

Tempted by the sounds and smells of the kitchen, Percy soon comes down and joins them, then does a brief double take at seeing Luffy. Ace isn't sure if it's just the surprise at finding him here, unannounced, or if it's to do with his slightly emaciated state. Whatever it is, Percy keeps his thoughts to himself, and aside from a brief 'hello' he stays quiet. It's earlier than usual, which explains Ginny's absence; Ace's mother probably wanted to let Ginny sleep in, despite Ace, Fred, and George's escapades. Ace's father is still sleeping too, probably. His work deprives him of a lot of shut-eye, so they try and let him sleep in on the weekends.

"So," Molly says, leaning against the counter. "What's this about not feeding you?"

Luffy looks up from his third helping of soup. After swallowing his last spoonful, he starts. "Well, there was a house elf—"

"A house elf? In Surrey?" She furrows her brow.

Luffy nods. "His name was Dobby. He sort of magicked my aunt and uncle. They thought it was me doing it so they locked me in my room."

"And they didn't feed you?!" Molly demands.

"No, no, they fed me. It just wasn't a lot. And I had to share some with Hedwig, so..."

Ace is well aware of how his little brother's body burns calories considerably faster than normal people— it's the same way Ace's body works. What might've barely been enough for average eleven-year-old boys, would be nowhere near enough for them. No wonder Luffy is in such bad shape.

"Why didn't you write to us?" Mrs. Weasley asks gently. "We would have helped you."

"Mum, they had bars on his windows," Ace says, still upset.

"Besides, Dobby's been intercepting my mail." Luffy takes another sip of soup, seemingly unperturbed. Everyone stares at him.

"I'll make sure to tell Dumbledore," Molly says with a nod after regaining herself.

"Why does it seem like there's a larger plot going on?" George asks.

"Because Harry can't stay out of trouble?" Ace supplies, nudging his little brother a little. Luffy's begun to perk up, and his returning grin is much brighter than before.

"Can I have some more?" Luffy asks, giving his mother a winning smile.

"I'm afraid that's all the soup I made." She's understandably miffed. It was a fairly large pot. "If you're feeling well enough, you can have some sausage and eggs."

"Yes please!"

As Ace watches his mother dole out a new plate of food to Luffy, he knows that his brother will be just fine.

After breakfast is done, Ace and Luffy are both excused from chores and sent to bed to catch up on a few hours of sleep. Considering Luffy's drowsy state, Ace thinks his mother has the right idea. They walk up to Ace's room, which is covered with Chudley Cannon memorabilia, the same bright orange as his old hat. Without a word, Ace grabs the thick blanket from his small bed and spreads it on the floor so they can share. He tosses the pillows down too before kicking his shoes off, and lying down on top. Luffy copies and scoots close to his brother until his head is half on Ace's chest.

"I'm so glad you're okay," Ace utters into the quiet air.

Luffy is silent and Ace thinks perhaps he may have fallen asleep, until he says,

"I knew Ace would come for me, but thank you for coming." Luffy grips Ace's shirt. "I'm so glad Ace came."

Ace places a hand around his little brother's shoulders and squeezes.

"Always."

* * *

When the duo descend the five flights of stairs it takes to reach the kitchen again hours later, they're greeted by Molly Weasley lightly smacking Fred and George over the head and taking a piece of paper from their hands.

"Oh, you're awake! I sent these two to wake you, but they're useless sometimes." Molly shakes her head while Fred and George both nod thoughtfully.

"We would've woken you, if you weren't in such an _intimate_ embrace." Fred snickers.

Ace feels his face go red as he realizes what they stumbled upon.

"Thankfully we still had film left in our camera, right Fred?" George says.

"Quite right."

Ace turns to his mother. "Please tell me—"

"I've got it," Molly assures him, holding the paper for him to see. "And if I ever see another copy so help me!"

Ace peeks over the paper and sees him and Luffy sleeping in the familial heap they grew up in. He lets out a sigh.

"It is awfully cute... But why were you both on the floor?" Molly asks.

Ace quickly lies, "Well, Harry wouldn't take the bed, and I wasn't going to sleep there while Harry was on the floor, so..." He trails off lamely.

His mother's face brightens with a wide smile and she scoops him into a hug.

As she pulls back, she says, "Look how polite you are! You two could take a page from Ron's book."

Ace flushes again. His mother is so affectionate. He still isn't completely used to it all...

"Are you feeling better now, Harry?" Mrs. Weasley asks, eyes scanning Ace's little brother.

The dark-haired boy nods and gives her a grin. "Much better. Thanks for the food!"

"Lunch'll be ready in an hour. In the meantime, I want you lot to de-gnome the garden." She gestures to her three children. "Harry, dear, you can stay in the kitchen with me if you like."

Luffy shakes his head. "I've never seen a de-gnoming before."

"It's dull work, but alright." She looks over his head. "Make sure he doesn't strain himself."

Luffy looks better than he did even a few hours ago due to his strange metabolism and resilience, so he's more chipper than before as he follows the three Weasley children out the door.

De-gnoming is just as boring as Ace remembers it being. It takes more than one person to de-gnome the yard, so with Fred and George on either side, Ace has no choice but to limit his strength to that of a pathetic twelve-year-old. After pestering the three Weasleys and promising not to get carried away, they let Luffy dispose of one or two on his own.

Luffy is weak enough that when he throws the gnomes, it's at the appropriate distance. It's a good thing... except Luffy looks utterly miserable. Ace throws a companionable arm over Luffy's shoulders and steers him back to the house.

"Remember, we have lunch."

That's enough to perk Luffy back up. He and Ace both wash their hands and appear in the kitchen in record time.

Molly's clearly delighted by their hunger. Since Ace has come back, he's been eating much more, to his mother's utter pleasure. Sadly, she can't get an ounce of meat on Ace's bones because of how quickly he burns the calories away just from being fire alone. That doesn't stop his mother from trying, much to Ace's happiness. He lucked out getting a parent insistent on overfeeding him. Unlike Luffy, whose guardians are clearly used to underfeeding him...

Ace shakes the thoughts from his mind as he settles at the table. Luffy's here now. That's all that matters. His brother takes a seat beside him, eager for more food. Luffy doesn't seem hungry (he isn't drooling, for one thing) but Ace figures that he's interested in gaining his strength back as soon as possible.

"I hope you're all hungry. I made tuna salad and some cottage pie. Let me know if it's too much for your stomach, dear," Molly says, placing a large plate stacked with two dozen sandwiches on the table next to three cottage pies. Ace and Luffy each grab four sandwiches and start eating. Fred and George join them, followed by Percy, Mr. Weasley, and then at last, Ginny.

Ace gets the feeling his little sister has been avoiding him and Luffy. She was awfully chatty about him this summer— a veritable crush (and because it's Luffy of all people he can't help but laugh a little). She sits down in the only available spot— across from Luffy, and keeps her head low as she nibbles on a sandwich. Ace feels bad for her crippling shyness in the face of his little brother.

"Hey, Ace," Luffy begins. "Can we play quidditch later?"

"I dunno. If there's time after chores, then probably."

"Ace?" Mr. Weasley asks, eyeing both boys.

"Like an ace pilot from WWII. Ace is really good at flying!"

"I've heard," Mr. Weasley says, smiling at Ace, before turning his intent gaze on Luffy. "Could you explain these pilots to me? I would be interested in learning more about muggle aeroplanes."

Luffy launches into a long, confusing explanation about airplanes and then fighters. Ace is trying to pay attention so he can decipher it for his father later, but finds himself hit by a sudden wall of tiredness. Unwillingly, his eyes slide shut and he lands head first on the table.

* * *

Ace wakes up just in time to smack a wandering hand away from his plate.

"That's my food," he growls, shaking off the vestiges of sleep. Thankfully, his head landed a few centimeters away from his plate, so he doesn't have a face full of tuna salad. Sitting up, he takes a bite of the sandwich Luffy almost stole, completely ignoring the looks of shock on his family's faces.

"Ron! Are you alright?!" His mother, who was by the fireplace, quickly approaches him and runs her hands over his face concernedly. "I was just about to floo an emergency Mediwizard."

"I'm fine." He waves her off. "I just fell asleep."

"Fell asleep?" Percy asks incredulously.

"Yep."

"We thought you died," Ginny says, eyes wide.

"Why is that everyone's first thought?" he wonders aloud.

"Because you're real still when you fall asleep, Ace." Luffy takes a large bite of cottage pie.

"And your head went 'thud'," Fred adds in.

"Straight onto the table," George echoes.

"Like a dead person," Fred finishes.

"Fred!" Mrs. Weasley scolds.

"This isn't the first time this has happened?" Arthur Weasley asks with concern.

Technically it's the first time in this world. Quickly thinking it over, he attributes the sudden episode to general sleeplessness of late, no History of Magic to nap through, and being completely surrounded by family and the comfort they all exude.

"It's happened before," he decides on saying.

"Why is this the first we're hearing about it?!" Mrs. Weasley storms.

"It isn't that big of a deal. It's just narcolepsy."

"Narcolepsy?" Percy wonders aloud.

Of all people, George seems to get it.

"That thing that dogs get?" he asks, eyes wide with disbelief.

"Yeah." Luffy laughs, seeming to get the joke. "It's pretty funny, right?"

All of them are still confused, so Percy takes the initiative and summons a dictionary. He pages through it until he finds the right passage.

"Narcolepsy," he reads aloud. "A condition characterized by an extremely frequent and uncontrollable need to sleep whenever in relaxing surroundings. The condition is extremely rare in the wizarding community, though less so in the muggle world, especially among animals." Percy raises a brow. "And you're saying you have this?"

"I don't think it could be anything else," Ace replies.

"You three aren't messing with us, are you?" Mr. Weasley asks, looking to Ace, Fred, and George.

Fred and George shake their heads before the latter says. "No, it isn't us."

"We wish it was."

"What a brilliant prank."

"I still can't believe that you haven't mentioned it to us before." Molly shakes her head.

"Because I knew you'd freak out." Ace shrugs. "So I fall asleep sometimes. It's not a big deal."

"It most certainly is a big deal, young man! I'm making an appointment with the Healer immediately, don't worry Ron, we'll get it taken care of."

"Mum," Ace says, a bit of a whine sneaks into his voice. Narcolepsy is often a good sign for him— it means he's relaxed and surrounded by comforting presences... it also reminds him greatly, fondly, of all the times his nakama would find him collapsed on the deck of the _Moby Dick._ Something inside him isn't willing to give it up, though he doesn't even know if there is a cure out there. Ace pauses for a minute then figures he should just go for a full lie. "I went to Madam Pomfrey the first time it happened. She said there was nothing she could do. I dunno if there's a better nurse out there."

His mother bites her lip, obviously at odds with it. "Fine, I'll wait a while. Please tell us if it happens again."

Ace smiles. Though it's a lie, he says, "Sure thing." Because in the face of all that love, how can he say anything else?

* * *

Over the next two months, Luffy regains his strength, and he and Ace train as much as possible. They lost one month of time, and both saw a noticeable lag in their growth. Intent on making it up, Ace and Luffy sneak out in the evenings to spar and practice their budding Haki. During the day, the duo plays quidditch, keeping those skills equally sharp. Overall, it's a brilliant summer— one Ace never fully expected to have. Enjoying every day with his brother, unrestrained by school, brings him back to a place where the air is saltier, and the golden tall grass by his house becomes a dense jungle, filled with dozens of fantastic creatures. He cherishes those moments most, because he finds a union between his past life and current one in a way rather inexplicable.

Two weeks before the term starts, they receive their Hogwarts letters— including their grades from the previous term. Both boys are impressed to see that they managed to squeak by with much better grades than they expected, considering they were running around trying to find information on Flamel the last part of the year. Ace's grades are so good that his mother sweeps him up in a hug.

"You may be following after Fred and George with all the mischief you get caught up in, but at least some of Percy is wearing off on you!"

His mother is so excited, Ace can't find the right moment to let her know that most all of it is due to Hermione's help. He leaves it be, and promises to be more obliging to Hermione's wishes to go to the library this coming semester in thanks.

Attached with their grades, they get a list of school supplies. Ace is depressed to find the costliness of it all. It's a relief to know that Luffy is well taken care of at least. _Very_ well taken care of. Still, he wishes that they were back in a world where pirates roamed so that he could justify stealing a little to covertly help his parents out. As it is, Ace is not in a good position to try (but who knows, maybe during the year some Slytherins will find their pockets lighter than usual. He probably should work on his pick-pocketing anyways; it's a valuable life skill).

The only place to get all their supplies is Diagon Alley, so every Weasley in the house and Luffy line up in front of the fireplace. Ace gets a bad feeling as his mother explains to Luffy for the third time how floo powder works.

Sure enough, his premonition was proven right as Luffy utter mangles the words and is sent Merlin knows where.

"I knew this would happen." Ace sighs. "Mum, can you cast a previous location spell?"

She nods, amused by his exasperation though with a hint of worry in her eyes. "Make sure to meet up with us near Flourish and Blotts," she warns.

"I know," he says while she casts the spell on the fireplace.

"Are you sure you don't want me to come along?"

"I can get us back. Stop worrying." With a short peck on his mother's cheek, he grabs the floo powder and throws it to his feet.

He's sent flying out, feet first, across a dusty floor. He crashes into his brother, who then tumbles to the ground. Looking around, Ace sees what looks like an abandoned antique shop. That or someone needs to get their house seriously dusted.

"Oh. Hi Ace."

"Hi?" Ace stretches his little brother's cheeks. "You idiot! Mum explained it three times!"

"It's hard to say!" Luffy manages to say through stretched lips. Ace releases his rubbery face and it snaps back. After pulling himself and Luffy off the floor, Ace glances around the apparently abandoned room, which is full of strange, morbid, and suspicious-looking artifacts.

"So cool!" Luffy says, examining a shrunken head gleefully. Ace grabs his hand and pulls him away before he can touch it.

"C'mon, Lu. Let's get out of here."

As they exit, Ace finds out exactly where they are. Knockturn Alley. He knows the darkened cobblestones from a rather frightening memory as a child where he'd accidently wandered off into the dark alley. Last time he was so terrified by the dark place with the deceitful eyes that he started crying all up until his father found him again and swept him back into the golden light of Diagon Alley. This time around, he isn't afraid, although he is somewhat wary; he's had enough experience dealing with the shady side of life to know that some of these people would look at two young boys and think _prey_.

"This way," he urges his little brother, giving the passersby distrustful looks. They make it a fair way through the alley unbothered just from Ace's threatening expression alone. It's actually Luffy who stops them.

"Ace," he exhales excitedly.

"What?" The red-head frowns.

"They have a tattoo parlor!" Luffy points. Following his direction, Ace sees a large sign. _Anderson's Tattoo Parlor._

It's surprisingly normal looking, compared to the relative uneasiness the rest of the alley perpetuates. Not that it matters in the end.

"We can't Luf, we don't have the money."

"I do!" Luffy says, pulling out his bag which still has several galleons from his last withdrawal.

Ace snorts. "I'm not taking your money."

"It's a late birthday gift," Luffy presses. "I forgot to give you something."

Ace remembers. Christmas Eve they discovered the Mirror of Erised, and the rest of the week sort of went by in a blur after seeing their old lives. They completely skipped Ace's other birthday. He bites his lip. He does miss having tattoos...

"Alright, but just a small one."

Luffy lets out a bright cheer, so at odds with the dark alley that it actually makes Ace's head spin.

"C'mon, let's hurry. We need to meet up with my Mum as soon as we can."

The pair enters the tattoo parlor and find a single man cleaning his needle-gun.

"Go away, brats," he says, without even looking up.

"We're paying customers," Luffy says, affronted.

"It's illegal to tattoo kids. Leave."

"He's an orphan and I'm rebellious," Ace claims, earning him a snort from the older wizard.

"We can pay you," Luffy tempts.

The man looks at them speculatively. "Two galleons a piece."

Ace chokes a little. That's practically robbery! Luffy doesn't blink though. He shifts through his money bag and pulls out four galleons and a silver sickle.

"For the sickle, can you promise to make it fast?" Luffy asks.

The man is clearly stunned to see kids carrying around so much money. He was likely banking on them being unable to pay. And now...

"Get in the chair, you brats," the man grouches.

Luffy lets out a high-pitched laugh that makes the artist wince, and Ace grins. Poor guy doesn't know what he's getting into.

Ace goes up first because Luffy is too indecisive. ("A dragon? No. A goblin! No. A skeleton! No, that's like Brook...")

Ace directs the man to create a horizontal copy of his old tattoo from his arm on his back, just below where the neck and shoulders meet.

"The pain potion is an extra twelve knuts," the guy says, and now he's just getting ridiculous.

Ace rolls his eyes. "I can handle it."

The artist raises a brow but chooses to say nothing. Instead he begins the piece. With one hand he pens the letters out, and with the other he casts a fast acting healing spell to close the wounds up quickly. Ace is rather impressed at the efficiency of it all. His last tattoo had been a bitch to care for and maintain while it healed up. This is much better. As the guy works, Luffy hovers over his shoulder to make sure it looks right. The tattoo artist hesitates after finishing the 'A'."

"You want me to spell it with an 'S'?" the guy asks again, for the fourth time.

"Yeah, and then cross the 'S' out," Ace confirms again.

"You kids are weird."

Luffy giggles.

After fifteen minutes, the tattoo is finished. The man sets him up with a pair of mirrors so he can see his back.

Ace smiles softly. "Perfect." He doesn't feel right not carrying a bit of Sabo with him wherever he goes.

Luffy goes next, settling into the chair excitedly and chattering on about what he wants the man to do. He chooses to get a small copy of his old straw hat in the same place as Ace.

Ace figures that like himself, Luffy is worried about what happens when his mother finds out (when, not if), but the opportunity to reclaim a bit of their past selves is too tempting to pass up, so they'll stick out the inferno.

"Harry! Ron!"

Ace jumps and turns to the window, expecting the worst. Fortunately, it isn't the Weasley matriarch who stumbles across them, but Hagrid. The man looks horrified as the artist continues working on Luffy's tattoo, not batting an eyelash at the intrusion.

"What're you boys doing?!" he asks, clearly flustered as he steps into the parlor.

"Getting tattoos!" Luffy smiles, entirely too chipper.

"And why on earth are you doing that?!" he thunders.

"Because we can," Luffy says with blatant disregard. He smiles to the giant. "We're free."

The large man takes a small step back before sighing. "Your mother is going to give us a talking to— all of us."

"Not if she doesn't find out." Ace slips his shirt back over his head and turns his back on the giant. "You can't even see it, can you?"

"No," Hagrid says reluctantly. "Fine, but if she does find out, I don't want me name tied up in this. Your mother is a very frightening witch, Ron."

"Don't I know it," Ace murmurs as the tattoo artist puts the last finishing touches on Luffy's piece. Once healed, Ace pulls the other shirt of his brother's head before Luffy quickly pays the man and they walk out. Their mother is going to kill them, if only for being late.

* * *

After waving goodbye to Hagrid, the brothers head to Florish and Blotts, which has a large crowd gathered inside it. They have to push their way through the throng of people to find Ace's mother's red head and orange sweater.

"Finally!" Mrs. Weasley huffs as Ace and Luffy finally appear.

"Sorry, sorry, we got caught up in Knockturn Alley—" Ace begins.

"Are you alright?" his mother immediately asks, running her eyes over them.

"We're both completely fine." Ace qualifies the statement. "If a bit dirty."

She gives two quick flicks of her wand and the two brothers are spick and span. "Well, come on in then, we've books to get." Her eyes are no longer on them, roving instead over the crowd inside the book store.

"Why're there so many people here?" Ace asks.

He soon gets his answer as a door near the back opens and a middle-aged, blonde man enters the room.

"It's Gilderoy Lockhart," his mother exhales as she unconsciously begins fixing her hair.

Ace rolls his eyes. He's heard about the 'heartthrob' all summer long from his mother and Ginny. He's had just about enough. He turns, wanting to go get other supplies until the man leaves.

"C'mon Lu, let's go." He looks over his shoulder only to find Luffy's gone missing. His eyes go back up to Gilderoy Lockhart, and he finds his brother looking incredibly uncomfortable as he's crushed up against the celebrity while a reporter takes their picture. He watches on with some disgust and amusement as Gilderoy goes on about the fortuitous day and meeting the great 'Harry Potter'. A few minutes later, Luffy comes staggering out of the crowd with his arms full of free books, looking completely bewildered.

"Let's leave." Luffy's face is pale and Ace can't help but laugh.

"Oh how lucky!" Mrs. Weasley exclaims.

"Yeah, lucky," Luffy mutters. Ace feels a small pang of guilt. His brother clearly isn't delighted to deal with all the fame. Back in their world, Luffy had absolutely relished his bounty and notoriety, but that was garnered through his own accomplishments. Ace sympathizes with what his brother must be going through, being celebrated for something he doesn't even remember doing.

Ace places a hand on his brother's shoulder and Luffy immediately perks up.

"At least Ace and I can share!" Luffy chirps.

Mrs. Weasley blinks. "That's awfully nice of you, Harry, but you should probably each have a set for class."

"We always sit next to each other anyways. It'd be a waste of paper for us to both buy the books." Luffy presses on.

Ace doesn't know if it's Luffy's earnest expression, or the expensiveness of the books that finally convinces his mother, but she slowly nods.

"Well, alright. That's very kind of you, dear. I'll get these signed. You two can go and take care of other things. Ron, here's money for some of your potions ingredients. Fred and George somehow used up both of their supplies of wormwood. I don't want to know how or what for." Molly huffs a sigh. "Take your sister to get a caldron, pewter, if they have some left. Now run along boys! The day's wasting!"

With that the Weasley matriarch walks to the far back of the shop where the line is gathered.

Ace rolls his eyes a little at his mother's behavior before looking around for Ginny. He spies the young girl paging curiously through the _Magic Judy_ books that she's fond of. When she sees him and Luffy approaching, she hastily shelves them and starts avoiding eye contact with Luffy.

"Mum wants us to find you a cauldron. She'll take care of the books."

Ginny murmurs something that's probably agreement, but Ace can't actually hear her.

"Speak up Gin, it's loud in here." Ace encourages. It's more likely to have to do with Luffy's presence. Actually, as he thinks about it, he can't recall if Ginny has yet to say a full sentence around his little brother.

His sister opens her mouth to answer properly, but is cut off by another voice.

"Look who it is, Father! I thought I smelled something foul, and sure enough, it's Weasley and his pet Potter."

Ace turns around and treated to the unpleasant sight of Draco Malfoy. Beside him is a tall man with platinum blond hair, and the same snooty look on his face. They must be related.

"Come now Draco, such mocking is beneath you. You know well that given the Weasley... _tribe's_ dire financial situation, they can hardly afford a proper cleaning, let alone a frivolous pet," the older blond says patronizingly.

"You're right, that was rude of me. I apologize, Father."

Ace feels his hair prickle in anger, and beside him he sees his sister's face flush in shame. The older blond man, Malfoy's _father,_ reminds him of the Tenryuubito and all the rich, entitled bastards in Goa kingdom. The perceived privilege and pointless cruelty is almost too much for him to handle and he just barely resists bursting into flames. He doesn't have an opportunity though, because before he can say anything, Luffy's hand shoots out and nails Draco firmly in the face.

Ginny gasps as Draco hits the floor. The boy sits up, clearly dazed, and nose gushing blood. In seconds Ace's brother is floating in the air with the older blond man waving his wand furiously in preparation for some kind of spell. Before Ace can unleash a wrath of flames on the bastard, Luffy opens his mouth and cries in a shrill tone only twelve-year-olds are capable of,

"STRANGER DANGER! A STRANGE MAN IS CASTING A SPELL ON ME!"

Malfoy Senior is so startled that he takes a step back and quickly undoes the incantation. It's too late, though, because the entirety of the store has turned to see the spectacle and witnessed it all. There's a long silence only broken by the sound of a camera shutter. That snaps the older Malfoy out of his daze, and he immediately dashes towards the poor camera operator and starts hissing at him furiously. All the while, Draco is still sitting on the floor, nose still bleeding. Ace would feel bad for the ignored boy, if he weren't such a prick. As it is, he claps his younger brother and sister each on the shoulder and steers them out of the store before Luffy gets dragged into an interview or something (as funny as it would be to hear Luffy accuse the older Malfoy man, it isn't worth the trouble).

The trio manage to squeeze their way out of the store, into the open air of Diagon Alley and around the corner. Now out of sight of anyone to pester them, Ace lets out a loud hearty laugh. Luffy follows with his gleeful chuckles and, after a moment of hesitation, Ginny joins in as well.

"That was a good one, L— Harry." Ace grins widely as Luffy smiles in pride and rubs his finger below his nose.

"Yeah, thanks Harry," Ginny manages quietly.

"S'nothing." Luffy's still smiling.

"C'mon, let's go to the potion shop before Mum finds us. Somehow I'm sure I'll get blamed for this."

* * *

 **.**

 **.**

 **.**

 **So. We start book two!**

 **I know some of you are going to say their relationship is too weird or OOC or whatever. I can make arguments to justify my choices, but at the end of the day, you have your opinion, I have mine, and that's whatever, yeah?**

 **For the tattoos... why not? They're adults.**

 **Anyways, I'd love to know what y'all think. Drop a review, if you like.**


	6. ll: It is and isn't so Easy Getting Back

**Sorry for the delay! Mad thanks to my beta, breather, that wonderful beautiful soul.**

 **Thanks to all my reviewers too! Thank you, Ender the multiverse Detective, The Keeper of Worlds, Angel Winx, WriterKillsReader, Anonymous Howler, Swanboy, crazy dragon ninja, DoctorKnight, RedHeadsRock1010, River King, Guest 2, QA, FireD . Rion, Michael, Syl, Reithandina, FirePsycho14, lizard-senpai, nigishikoi {holy shit that was a long review!}, Kanda Yuuki, sesshomaru-sama's lover, LongPastMidnight, and BBLimits!**

 **All of you, thank you so so much!**

* * *

 _Chapter 6: It is and isn't so Easy Getting Back to it_

* * *

Standing in front of Snape's desk with the black haired man looming over them like a vengeful spirit, Ace finds the only emotion he can feel is defiance. The man brings to mind every Marine officer Ace recalls meeting in the twenty years of his other life. Rude, overbearing, and needlessly cruel— Snape in a single sentence. It pisses Ace off. From the look on Luffy's face, it's clear that the other boy feels similarly, because even as they get a talking to, Luffy sticks his pinky up his nose and starts belligerently digging around.

Snape turns three different shades of red.

"That's it!" The professor slams his hand on the desk. "Slytherin or not, I will make sure that you two are on the train tonight!"

Before Ace can say something likely very rude, he's cut off.

"I'm afraid that decision is not yours to make, Severus."

Ace and Luffy both turn around and see Dumbledore and professor McGonagall, both looking rather stern. Ace slaps his brother's hands away from his nose.

"Professor," Ace greets respectfully.

"Hi!" Luffy grins.

"Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, I don't know if you are aware of the gravity of your situation," Dumbledore says. "But as your house head, your fate now lies in the hands of Professor McGonagall."

Luffy and Ace exchange looks before facing their house head with winning, pleading smiles.

McGonagall is taken slightly aback by the combined force of their earnest expressions, but she assembles herself quickly and brings the stern look back to her lips.

"You're not expelled... tonight at least," she decides.

Luffy lets out a little cheer and Ace high-fives him.

"However, I must impress upon you the seriousness of your actions."

Ace quickly puts a solemn look on his face, barely keeping it together when he sees his little brother determinedly copying the expression.

"Thank you, Professor." Ace only just resists giving her a bow like he once did to show gratitude. Over the time he's spent at Hogwarts, he's really begun to appreciate his house head and her unerringly fair disposition.

"Thank you, Professor," Luffy echoes.

McGonagall sighs. "Heart problems, the both of you."

Ace can't help but grin.

"Off to the feast, now," Dumbledore encourages. "I expect many students are awaiting your return quite eagerly."

"Food!" Luffy chirps before running out the door.

"L— Harry!" Ace complains.

"It's important for children to have good appetites. Harry's is rather impressive, if I do say so myself." Dumbledore's eyes shine in a way too knowing for Ace's preferences.

Eager to leave, he dips his head pointedly towards only McGonagall and Dumbledore and says formally, "Thank you again, Professor. We appreciate your kindness." —before running out into the hallway. He dashes straight for the Great Hall, knowing that's the only place his brother would go. As he pushes open the large doors, the sound in the Great Hall stills as everyone turns to stare at him. He feels his face flush.

Of course everyone knows what happened. What was it that Dumbledore said last year? 'It's a secret so naturally everyone knows.' Stupid. Completely accurate and stupid. Oh well. Trying to ignore the stares, he walks towards his table and the only face that didn't look up at him. Predictably, he finds Luffy stuffing his face.

"Ron!" Across from his brother, Hermione stands as he approaches. From the stern expression on her face, he already knows he isn't going to like this conversation.

"Hello, Hermione," he greets calmly, before taking a seat beside his brother.

"Is it true you drove a flying car into the Whomping Willow?" she demands sitting back down agitatedly. From how everyone else leans in, he can tell she's not the only one curious.

"Sort of." He winces in the face of her shocked expression. "It was an accident. We had a slight malfunction." That malfunction being that he had no idea how one lands a flying car. Ace thinks he did pretty okay, all things considered. From Hermione's face he can tell she doesn't agree.

"That's so incredibly reckless! I read about the Whomping Willow in _Hogwarts: A History._ People have _died_ because of the Whomping Willow!"

Ace can't help but snort at this, even as Hermione glares. "Oh please. Harry and I beat He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. I don't think a _tree_ could kill us, of all things."

"Ace is right. We totally beat Voldoremert. Trees are no big deal," Luffy says through a mouthful of food. Gasps sound from the table.

"Luffy don't say that name!" Hermione says, eyes wide. Several others within earshot nod fervently, looking pale faced.

"You always get it wrong anyways," Ace teases.

"No I don't," Luffy protests mildly before swallowing and taking a large bite of food.

"Ah, I almost forgot." Ace turns towards Luffy and bops him on the head. "What's the big idea with leaving me alone with the professors, huh?"

Luffy makes an unintelligible utterance behind all the food in his mouth and Ace sighs.

"We've been working on this, remember," he reminds. Luffy dutifully swallows before speaking again.

"I almost missed the feast."

"What about me?"

"I woulda gotten you something to eat too," Luffy tries, all while avoiding eye-contact.

"Liar. You would eat it before I ever saw it." His brother's too selfish when it comes to food. Then again, Ace tends to be, too. And considering their childhood at the Bandit's Hideout, well, maybe it isn't inexplicable. Still.

"Don't do that again," Ace says sighing again.

"You two are hopeless," Hermione utters, looking frustrated.

Ace grins at her. "That's what we're here for."

"How was your summer Herminoney?" Luffy asks.

"It's HER-MIO-NE!" the witch growls. It's a credit to how she's grown that she doesn't get upset. Luffy says things wrong all the time, and Ace think's Hermione is finally catching on.

"That's what I said."

She makes a short sound of frustration before rolling her eyes. "My holiday was nice. I went to Bermuda with my parents, saw some turtles, and read a lot on the beach. How was yours?"

Ace can't help but visibly twitch at the mention of Luffy's summer. That good for nothing uncle and aunt of Luffy's makes Ace's blood boil just thinking of it. He cuts into his roast beef a tad more viciously than is probably appropriate considering the creature it's from is already dead.

"Great!" Luffy chirps. "I spent time at Ace's house with his family. They have gnomes, and a cat, and like twelve rooms! It's the coolest house ever!" Luffy gushes.

Hermione's brow furrows. "I thought they weren't going to let you go over to Ron's?"

Ace coughs into his hand. "I may have... _reacquired_ Harry."

"You didn't." Hermione's face is exasperated, and yet Ace can see some fondness. He wants to smile, he does, but the way Luffy had looked standing in the window, behind the bars at his Aunt's and Uncle's house, _emaciated_ — it still haunts Ace's mind.

"They were—" Ace suddenly remembers that they have an audience, and he clamps down his anger. "I'll tell you later."

"Okay..." Hermione trails off.

"Did you do any good reading over the break?" he asks. And she's off. Authors and book titles fill the air as Hermione eagerly shares her intellectual pursuits. Luffy chips in every now and then to comment about how weird some of the names are, or to ask questions. Ace joins in and teases her in between stories, which makes her huff and smile.

And it's... perfect.

He loves his family, but Ace thinks that part of his home is here too.

* * *

Ace stares disgustedly at his broken wand over his goblet of pumpkin juice. The rest of the hall is enjoying breakfast, but Ace is unable to find his appetite. He attempted a simple levitating spell this morning and found himself pasted to the castle ceiling. He hoped the magic tape would be enough to repair his wand, but it clearly isn't if this morning's display is anything to go by. Ace kneads his forehead with his hands.

What is he going to do?! His family _definitely_ doesn't have enough money to buy him a new wand, but this one is completely useless! He hasn't even mentioned it to them for fear of his life. After crashing the family car into the Whomping Willow he really has no right to ask for a new wand. Ugh. Hermione is obviously concerned (evidently, after he received his Howler, she finds it fit to speak sympathetically to him again) but doesn't have a solution either. It isn't until transfiguration, when Ace is staring at the mouse he's supposed to make into a pin cushion, that a solution is found. By all people, it's Luffy.

"Try mine," Luffy says, pushing his wand into Ace's hand. The older boy blinks, and opens his mouth to protest. Because the wand feels _weird_ in his hands, sort of like the strangeness of walking on solid ground after months at sea – steady but not at the same time. There's a good chance he'll explode his mouse.

Then again, with his own wand, it's likely he'll turn _himself_ into a pincushion if the most recent examples are anything to go by.

What the hell.

With a shrug, Ace grips Luffy's wand tighter and utters the enchantment.

To his surprise, there are no explosions, and instead he has a pincushion with a tail in front of him.

"Try it with more wrist movement, Mr. Weasley," McGonagall critiques.

He nods dumbly, still surprised it worked. He repeats the action until he reaches the desired effect and she nods satisfactorily. When she turns to speak to another group Ace passes the wand back to Luffy.

"Thanks."

"Sure thing."

And thus, the two develop a pattern. Whenever the teacher isn't looking, Ace and Luffy switch wands to accomplish the spell work. Luffy's wand still doesn't feel right in his hand, but Ace admits that it's much better than the alternative. Meanwhile, he's begun to pickpocket some spare change from certain Slytherin students (mostly Malfoy, specifically). He figures he'll have enough saved to buy a wand by next year, if he can keep up without being caught. He doubts anyone will catch on. The wizarding world is completely weak to muggle theft. Malfoy's pockets are probably lined with spells to counter theft charms, but that's nothing against Ace's quick fingers.

Getting back into the swing of Hogwarts is less challenging than Ace expected it to be. They're taking all the same courses, just at different times and at a harder level. Most all the classes are the same, with one exception: Defense Against the Dark Arts.

Having heard about Lockhart _all_ summer long, Ace doesn't know for certain what to think of the man. Based on what his mother and Ginny have been spewing, he should anticipate meeting one of the most selfless, talented, and best looking chaps on the planet. If he decides to listen to his gut, well, his short time observing the man had left a much... _different_ perspective. He knew that after the small encounter Luffy had with Lockhart, his brother is dreading attending the class, even if the feeling only expresses itself in the occasional face Luffy makes when the man is mentioned.

Hermione on the other hand hardly put down _Voyages with Vampires_ their entire first day of class. Ace even sees her look towards it longingly during History of Magic before he went off to join Luffy in their scheduled siesta.

When they actually arrive at the class and Lockhart passes out their first assignment, Ace finds that his gut is as trustworthy as ever.

"What is Lockhart's favorite color?" Ace murmurs aloud incredulously. From beside him, Luffy looks torn between laughter and nausea. Most of the boys in the class exchange looks of disbelief. Hermione, on the other hand, is bent over her desk studiously, putting her nose to the grindstone. Ace wants to laugh but can't quite manage the feat, feeling so out of his depth. He doesn't know any of the answers, so there's no doubt he's bombing this test. Might as well do it with style. Ace starts answering the questions, one after the other. With flair.

' _1\. What is Gilderoy Lockhart's favorite color?_

 _'Black.'_

 _'2. What is Gilderoy Lockhart's secret ambition?'_

 _'To gather a crew of eunuchs and sail the Grand Line in search of the greatest treasure in the world.'_

 _'3. What do you think is Gilderoy Lockhart's greatest achievement to date?_

 _'Trick question. He has no achievements, besides selling books.'_

And so on and so forth until an entire half of an hour passes and Lockhart collects all the tests. He rifles through them for some time. He pauses on one before looking up straight at Ace with a look between disgust and fear, before continuing on. Ace knows which paper is his brother's when Lockhart makes a repulsed face and peels a damp sheet of paper from the rest. Even though they already have a nap scheduled before this class, Ace figures it's the best thing either of them can do to keep sane— especially if the utterly revolted look on Lockhart's face as he holds a paper that's been thoroughly drooled on is replicable.

After giving Hermione points for getting every answer right, he dismisses the class. Ace is amused to catch the professor casting him looks of concern. Probably worried about Ace's mental health from his unique answers to the questions. Rightfully so. Ace is a little concerned too, after being a part of that farce. He's just itching to break something. From the look mirrored on Luffy's face, his little brother is just as unhappy. They want to _learn_ something.

Each class is increasingly worse, with Lockhart showing his inability to do actual magic more and more every day. In History of Magic, it's easy for Ace to justify sleeping, because what Binns is teaching them is utterly useless. But DADA is supposed to be one of the classes with the most application for real life! Lockhart smashes all his preconceived notions about the art and he finds himself growing more and more ruffled every day. In fact, Ace is about to rip his hair out, until about two weeks in when Hermione reminds them that they have quidditch tryouts after lunch, and the brothers break out into wide grins.

They hustle out to the pitch right after stuffing their faces. Hermione practically has to trot to keep up. They're early, so they walk her up to a nice place on the stands where she pulls out _Year with a Yeti_ to keep herself entertained. It's probably a good idea, because even though Ace only attended practices last year, he knows that Wood can _talk._

All the competitors gather, a wide array of second through sixth year students. Ace isn't concerned. He and Luffy practiced over the summer... a lot. Beyond that, Wood was going to offer Ace a position last year, and he knows he's only gotten better since then. Fred and George are lined up behind Wood, removed from the hopefuls, because there's no point in running try-outs for the position of beaters; no one has come to try and challenge Fred and George's immaculate teamwork. This leaves the three Chaser spots. To achieve one, he'll have to beat out one of the three returning players, Angelina Johnson, Katie Bell, and Alicia Spinnet. Amusingly enough to Ace, most of the other hopefuls here are trying out for the position of seeker. A poor choice on their behalf.

After Wood's lecture (which the Weasley twins mime perfectly behind his back, making all the recruits fight against laughter), Wood starts calling people up to face against Luffy to find the snitch. Ace barely keeps from snorting at how unnerved the competitors are when Luffy just stares them down with his blank expression. As he expected, from the seven people who try out to be seekers, none of them succeed in beating his brother to the snitch. Luffy comes back to the ground with a wide, exhilarated grin, which Ace returns. Because now it's his turn.

Wood calls up Alicia, Angelina, and Katie to be on one team, and then Ace, a sixth year, and a fourth year to be on the other side. They scrimmage for about twenty minutes before Wood blows the whistle and changes up the formation. This proceeds for the better part of two hours as Wood moves people in and out, from team to team as he tries to see what works best. Ace is having the time of his life. The fast-paced, pressured plays are just what he needs to relieve all the stress that's been building in his chest.

It's difficult to try to develop a rhythm with strangers, but he gets better as he goes along. But whenever Ace is paired up with one of the three girls from last year, it's a blood bath. He's practiced with them enough as a substitute to read them by this point, and every play is thrilling and flawless... It makes it that much harder to accept that if Ace is flying his best, one of them won't be first string anymore.

It's late afternoon when Wood finally calls it quits. Ace descends, wiping the sweat from his brow. Wood really knew how to push them.

The team captain's face is troubled as they all line up in front of him, but after a deep breath he announces the results.

"Our returning seeker will be Harry Potter. As for the chasers, the three I found to have the best teamwork are Angelina Johnson, Alicia Spinnet... and Ron Weasley."

Ace exhales in relief even as Luffy grins and nudges him with delight. Fred and George let out little whoops and something about 'ginger pride' before Wood clears his throat.

"Our substitutes will be Katie Bell and Ryan Birch. Our first practice will be next Sunday at six in the morning— don't groan," he says when a low murmur of displeasure rose. "This year will be our year. I can feel it."

"You say that every year," Fred puts in, grinning in the face of his captain's irritation.

Wood just sighs, used to the twins' antics. "Dismissed."

As everyone heads back to the locker rooms to change, Ace glances over at Katie Bell, who meets his gaze head on. After wordlessly gesturing his brother to go on ahead, he slows his pace to talk with her.

"Sorry."

She shrugs. "It had to be one of us, didn't it?"

"True. I'll miss playing with you though," he says honestly.

She punches his arm. "You're not getting rid of me." Katie snorts. "I'll still be on the team as a substitute. Next year, you better watch your back, because I'll be coming for you, _Ace._ " With a departing determined grin she walks into the girl's locker room. Ace smiles after her before he heads into the other locker room to change. He's looking forward to it already.

* * *

Ace and Luffy return to the castle in high spirits. Fred and George are walking with them, chattering as they go back and forth about how proud Mum and Dad will be when they hear about 'Ickle Ronnie-kins.' Ace in such a good mood, their pet name doesn't even faze him.

Hermione left sometime in the middle of Ace's tryouts, so after quick showers, the brothers head to the library, where sure enough, they find her brown bushy hair buried in a book.

"Hi! Guess who became a Chaser?!" Luffy asks, and despite how long they spent flying, he's still bouncing on his heels.

"Ron, oh congratulations!" she says earnestly.

"Thanks." He smiles.

Luffy tugs on both of their sleeves. "Come on, it's dinner time and we're late. I'm so hungry!"

"You're always hungry," says Hermione in a slightly scolding tone, but she packs up her stuff and heads out the door with them anyways. As they wait on the edge of the walkway for the stairs to move back in place, Luffy starts grinning excitedly.

"Did you forget? It's the Halloween feast!" Luffy replies.

"Even if it wasn't you'd still be like this," Hermione points out dryly.

"At least you can always say he's predictable," Ace says mildly.

"What?" Luffy asks, turning around curiously.

"I said 'at least you're predictable,'" Ace repeats.

"No, I heard something about... blood."

Hermione looks at him sideways. Ace mimics the expression, but with more concern.

"Blood?" Hermione asks.

Luffy frowns for a moment before shaking his head. "Never mind. I think I'm hearing things."

"You're probably delirious from hunger," Ace teases. He moves to place his hand on his brother's shoulder but Luffy starts with surprise before he can.

"Wait! There! There it is again! Can't you hear it?"

"Harry, no one's saying anything." Hermione speaks slowly, becoming worried.

Luffy pouts. "But I know I heard something." His head snaps to the side suddenly. "Again!"

When the stairs click into place, Luffy is off, shooting down the hallway. Without a second thought, Ace follows after him, an unpleasant feeling settling in his chest.

His gut sensation is quickly proven correct as they turn the corner and come face to face with a stone wall, covered with blood. 'The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Enemies of the heir beware,' the writing reads. Hermione arrives after a few more seconds, and she gasps at the sight. Luffy tilts his head while Ace sniffs the air.

"S'just chicken's blood," he assures her.

"I thought it looked fake." Luffy smiles. Hermione levels the pair of them with a quelling look.

Ace clears his throat. Perhaps that wasn't the correct response.

"What do you think the words mean?" he asks, happy to redirect her thoughts. Her brow furrows as she steps closer to the wall. The splashing sounds her shoes make in the puddle practically echo along the empty hallway, and they all look down at the water they previously overlooked. Why is everything wet, Ace wonders.

"Ooh! Kitty!" Luffy's call makes Ace's head snap right up. His brother's pointing at the rather bizarre sight of Mrs. Norris hanging by her tail from a torch on the wall... what's most bizarre is her incredible stillness. Oh shit.

"We need to get out of here, now!" Ace hisses, grabbing his brother and Hermione by the sleeves of their robes and dragging them into the closest classroom he can find. He gracelessly shoves them in the door before following after. Just in time, because he can hear the students coming up the hall from the feast.

"Ace?" Luffy asks with concern.

"Shh!" he says, leaning his ear against the shut door. Sure enough he can hear the murmurs and gasps of the students as they see the terrible sight for themselves.

"Ron," Hermione says sternly. "You aren't going to keep this a secret, are you?"

"Obviously." When her look turns stormy he continues, "Look, I really don't want to get pinned for killing Mrs. Norris. We don't have that great of an alibi. We should've been with the rest of the school in the Great Hall, not chasing after voices. Besides, it's not like we know anything they don't know now."

Hermione bites her lip, before continuing, "Do you think we should tell a professor about the voices Harry heard? They might be a clue!"

"No," Ace says quickly, protectively. He knows that hearing voices is never good, no matter the world. "You hear that, Harry? Not a word to anyone else. If you do hear something again, let me or Hermione know, alright?"

"Uh-huh!" Luffy replies. "Now let's go find Fred and George. They probably have food somewhere for us!"

"One track mind." Hermione shakes her head. Once the murmurs from outside fade, she and the boys exit quickly through the doors and sneak back into their common room.

Though they chat a fair bit on the way to their dorm, and then with Fred and George in the common room, Ace can tell that Hermione's head is somewhere entirely different. This happened last year when she was stewing on the truth behind Nicholas Flamel. Hopefully this time will end with less You-Know-Who. Still, whenever she focuses like this it's incredibly hard to break her attention with any kind of unrelated conversation, so Ace leaves her be and sets himself to talking to only Luffy for the foreseeable future.

The next day, they learn that Mrs. Norris was just petrified, thankfully. Ace doubts that Filch would ever be the same if his beloved companion died... rather sad as it may be. Whatever. Classes continue on, just with more gossip, which, for once, has nothing to do with his brother. Ace relishes the change of pace while he can, because sooner or later Luffy will end up back in the news. Hermione, as he expected, has barely paid any attention to him and Luffy. It isn't until a week passes that he finally learns the fruits of her ruminations.

Luffy and he are dozing, as usual, in Binns' class, when Hermione raises her hand. The unusual occurrence of a voice other than Binns' constant drone shakes him and Luffy from their dreams. Ace opens one eye blearily, and blinks a bit more awake when Hermione starts asking about the Chamber of Secrets.

He perks up as Binns actually begins explaining the mysterious place. When Hermione asks about what the Chamber houses, Luffy starts in his seat with excitement.

"It's said to house some kind of formidable monster," Binns explains. Most of the class exchange nervous, frightened glances— except for Luffy and Ace, who share wide grins. Beside them, Hermione catches their expressions and lets out a mournful sigh. A heavy, foreboding sensation settles in her stomach and she thinks she knows where this is going.

She isn't disappointed. After class, Ace and Luffy practically dash towards the scene of the crime, hoping to find clues about the monster, and better yet, a way to track it down. Hermione unhappily stands and lectures them as they scour the ground, but both boys ward her words off with unconcerned comments and excited smiles.

"I just don't understand why you're both so eager to come across some monster that is supposedly capable of petrifying and killing people!"

Ace smirks but hides his expression from the young girl. She doesn't understand yet how strong they are, how exciting adventure really is (especially since this time it doesn't involve He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named), and how brilliant it feels to be free to fight for something. Someday she will; her friendship with Luffy assures that inevitability.

"Not all monsters are bad." Luffy grins cheerfully. "Remember Fluffy? He was awesome!"

Hermione rolls her eyes. "I don't know what you two did to tame that dog, but I don't think it'll work on whatever kind of monster is hiding in the Chamber of Secrets."

"It might," Luffy hums back, examining the stone floor with intense concentration.

"Or it might not." Hermione frowns heavily. "It could _kill_ you, Harry!"

He opens her mouth but she cuts him off.

"Even though you did survive the encounter with You-Know-Who, that doesn't guarantee that you'll beat whatever kind of creature this is. From what Professor Binns said, it's likely older than anyone currently alive, and likely stronger that You-Know-Who." She whispers the last part like it's near blasphemy.

"How do you know?" Luffy asks with a genuinely curious tone.

"I don't, but Harry, it's too risky!"

"That's what makes it exciting!" he chirps back.

"No it isn't!" she snaps. "Getting killed isn't fun! You're just being so— so irresponsible!"

Her reply only garners a laugh. "You sound so much like Nam—" The words die so suddenly in his throat that Ace lifts his head from the floor he's examining. The full impact of what his brother was about to say hits him, and Ace is by his side in moments.

Luffy stares straight forward, gaze not blank, but _lost._

Ace's hand grips his brother's shoulder, and he snaps his fingers in front of Luffy's face. "Harry? Lu?"

The younger boy turns to him, slowly, sluggishly, eyes growing pained and complex. Ace _hates_ the look.

"Ace..." Luffy exhales. "I'm tired." And he's talking about so much _more_ than either can express with words. The energy that endlessly flows off his being is dampened by a sudden solemnity of their existence. Only Ace understands, so he nods and pulls his brother up from the floor.

"Let's head back to the dorm, yeah? The monster can wait a little while."

Luffy says nothing, but complies with Ace's gentle tugging. Ace is completely aware of the wide-eyed concerned looks being cast their way by Hermione, but all his attention is focused on his brother, who still looks dazed by what he almost said. Thankfully, most people aren't in the common room except for some seventh years, but they don't pay any mind to the three subdued second years. Hermione trails after them, silently and uncertainly, up until they reach the boys' dormitory.

Ace nudges his brother down the hall. "Go on in. I'll be right there."

Luffy nods before drifting away, gaze still unfocused. When the door clicks behind his brother, Ace turns to their third friend, whose eyes are wet and afraid.

"What did I say?" she asks in a small voice.

"Shh," Ace soothes. "It's nothing like that. Harry just remembered something."

"I've never seen him so—" She swallows and sniffs. Ace supposes she hasn't. No one has ever really seen this side of his brother. No one else is there in the dark hours of the morning when everything the pair try to hide comes out from the shadows. No one has seen Luffy trembling, crying, apologizing for not doing better, for not _being_ better— Ace exhales and places a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry about it. He'll be fine, you'll see," he assures her. "Tomorrow he'll be right as rain."

She nods hesitantly, still clearly upset. Ace can't explain anything more, so he doesn't try. Instead he turns around and heads down the hall to their room. As he enters, he's extremely grateful to find that their other three roommates aren't present, probably at dinner; Ace doesn't think either of them have much of an appetite at this point.

Luffy is already lying down on Ace's bed, curled into himself miserably. After kicking his shoes off and tossing his robe on his trunk, Ace follows, drawing the curtains around them as he does. Alone and surrounded by curtains so thick the fading sunlight can't cut through them, they create a level of privacy neither boy can find anywhere besides the Forbidden Forest. In these moments, Ace curls around his little brother, offering the comfort he never can around others. Luffy responds slower than usual, but his returning grip around Ace's midsection is as tight as ever.

Ace waits in silence for the words that might or might not come. Their breath is the only sound in the empty room.

"I forget," Luffy starts, voice soft. "Sometimes I forget."

"I know, Lu." Ace cards a hand through his brother's hair.

"How can I do that? They're my nakama. They're precious. I— shouldn't be forgetting them like this."

"You aren't forgetting them, Luffy. You're just living in the moment, and I know it's hard, but they wouldn't want you to dwell on this," Ace points out. "They'd want you to keep having adventures, keep smiling."

"I worry about them," Luffy confesses. "I left them. In our world, I went and died on them before they could accomplish their dreams."

A quick stab of guilt settles in Ace's stomach. Because fuck. It's all his fault that Luffy died. If he hadn't turned to face Akainu, none of this would have happened—

As if reading his thoughts, his little brother lifts his head and stares Ace straight in the eyes.

"I don't regret it. I couldn't live in a world without Ace."

Ace chokes slightly on air. Because he feels the same way, but god, he doesn't want that horrible sensation going both ways. It seems too late though, because Luffy's eyes are firm with promise, one that both chills and warms Ace at the same time.

"I don't regret it," Luffy says again into Ace's shirt as he lowers his head back down. "But sometimes I miss them. I forget that they're all long gone, that I won't see them again."

The fire-user rubs his brother's back. He feels similarly. Marco, Izou, Haruta, Vista— _Pops._ All of them are lost from his life. Both he and Luffy try so hard to keep their eyes on what's on front of them, not dwelling on things that are truly lost. But it's hard at times. Usually it's just a muted moment here and there, or in the solitude of the night. Ace figures that the suddenness of the comparison Luffy was about to make is what really shook him. That and he was actually about to say it _aloud._ With the thoughts kept to themselves, or whispered between each other at night, it makes it easier to ignore the past, but out in the open air, it's too real and distant at the same time. It's sometimes so easy, _too_ easy, to just drift into this life of magic, to ignore the fact that both of them lost their other family, their nakama.

Ace grips his brother tighter. If Luffy wasn't here, Ace doesn't know if he'd be able to cope. His brother is, though, and his warm presence soothes the pain of loss. Ace is grateful that he and Luffy have this amazing second chance at life together, but the memories of everything that they lost are still potent.

As his brother buries his head further into Ace's shoulder, Ace allows his eyes to close. He and Luffy are going to get weird looks tomorrow morning when the other boys see them emerging from the same bed, but right now Ace couldn't care less. All he wants is to sleep with his brother close to him.

* * *

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 **Kind of a little whiplash, but this just shows they aren't really coping... like at all. Thanks for reading! Leave a review, if you like~**


	7. ll: Ridiculousness is a Family Trait

**So sorry about the wait. RL etc... I have enough to finish off second year, so wait for that.**

 **Thanks to my beta breather. Fantastic soul~**

 **Cheers to: The Keeper of Worlds, RedHeadsRock1010, R403, littleditto, Syl, Elfyliane, Mat, Anonymous Howler, Twinkledash, Dareagon, Guest 2 (09/22/16), Kat, chiharuSAICHI, allykrau, Thisisarealtagwhy, Smile-Evily, Zaralann, Syanka, MoonShadow396, and Anon (10/25/16)! I appreciate all the reviews and feedback. Some of y'all are close and not so for who's who...**

* * *

 _Chapter 7: Ridiculousness is a Family Trait_

* * *

Ace sneaks carefully and quietly down the corridors of the school. The only light is cast by the exceptionally dim torches. No one aside from Filch and a few ghosts are out and about at this time of night. And Ace. Not that anyone knows that, because he's sheltered by Luffy's invisibility cloak.

The reason for his late-night excursion is currently laid up in the hospital wing. He and Luffy had their first quidditch match for the season, and he'd say it went well — Ace, Angelina, and Alicia played an incredible game of keep-away from the Slytherins — except that there was a remarkably stubborn bludger honed in on his little brother. It's moments like that which make Ace eternally thankful to Shanks for his brother's resilient physical make-up. In fact, Ace is certain without his rubber abilities, Luffy would be considerably bloodied up. But, it's generally just sharp things and their shitty Grandfather who can actually do legitimate damage to him. The only issue is that no one else knows that in this world. So after seeing Luffy take a bludger to the head again, and again, and again, and _again,_ Ace supposes it's natural for the nurse to want to keep him overnight for observation, even if there is no visible damage.

So Luffy's up in the hospital wing and Madam Pomfrey is as unyielding as ever when it comes to visiting hours. Again. Screw that. Ace will visit his little brother whenever he wants!

Ace thinks that they've been remarkably lucky that the nurse hasn't figured out either of their unique make ups, but he fears it's only a matter of time. He doesn't know what he'll tell her if it came to that, but he should probably be considering it...

The fire-user is startled from his thoughts by a strange sound, like air escaping a can. The sound is followed by a flash, like a camera. He turns the corner curiously, only to see something large and dark disappearing around the other corner. His heart leaps. It has to be the monster! The delight in his chest is tempered considerably by the sight of an all-too-still Colin Creevy. Shit. Not again. It's moments like these that Ace wishes he had his Observational Haki back to sense where the hell the creature went in the dark. He doesn't though, so Ace decides to just take the risk.

Ace creeps closer, trying to see if the young student is dead or just petrified. He exhales with relief when he sees that Colin's hands are frozen around the camera he was looking through, not limp. Ace sighs and rubs his face, wondering what to do. He could get a professor, but his late night escapade would be cut short. Another less attractive option would be leaving Colin for someone else to find; after all, it's not like Colin's going to go anywhere... Maybe that was tasteless of Ace, but Luffy definitely would have laughed. After a few moments, Ace decides he's overthinking this.

After clearing his throat, Ace takes a deep breath and lets out a long dramatic cry. He then retreats behind the corner, out of the way. As he expected, Filch comes hobbling down the hallway. Upon seeing Colin, he gasps and turns right around, no doubt heading for Dumbledore. Ace has a good idea where they're headed, so he waits for the professors to come running by the wall, well out of their way. They don't disappoint. McGonagall and Dumbledore appear, faces drawn at the sight of another victim of petrification. With a little wand work, McGonagall levitates her young student in the air and starts guiding him towards the hospital wing. Ace follows their solemn party as quietly as he can. Fred and George have always told him that Dumbledore knows _everything,_ but if Dumbledore knows he's here, he does a damn good job of hiding it.

Ace slips carefully in after the group before they can shut the door behind them. He silently treads up to his brother's bed while keeping a keen ear out for their conversation. Though Luffy's eyes are closed, the furrowed brow tells Ace his brother is listening in just as he is.

As he suspected, Colin was just petrified, thankfully. Unfortunately, Colin's camera was melted by whatever creature attacked him, leaving its identity still unknown. Ace waits for the sound of their departing footsteps to fully vanish before tugging the cloak off of his head.

"Ace!" Luffy chirps.

"Shhh," Ace warns, finger to his lips. Madam Pomfrey's hearing is second only to Madam Prince's. Luffy scoots over without being asked and Ace settles in the hospital bed beside his little brother.

"Did you see what happened to Colin?" Luffy asks.

"I was there when it happened."

Luffy's eyes widen. "Did you see—"

Ace shakes his head. "Missed it by a few seconds. But I can tell you one thing."

"What?"

"It's big."

Luffy and he exchange wide predatory grins. Because they're going to put an end to these attacks themselves.

* * *

After Ace's near-sighting of the creature, both boys are downright antsy about finding it. They're just _itching_ to take whatever it is down.

Spurred on by this desire, they spend more and more time in the woods. Since Luffy's most recent remembrance of his crew, neither have been able to sleep well outside of History of Magic. Ace attributes the success of HoM naps to a combo of having Luffy directly beside him, and Binns' hypnotic tone. Considering that their nights aren't very productive anyways, the duo decide to start using the late hours for practice. Every night they pull on Luffy's large invisibility cloak and sneak carefully out the castle into the Forbidden Forest.

Since Hermione joined their group, they had cut back on their training considerably. It didn't strike them until now where they could get that time back. Now that they've thought of it though, they're back to their daily (or rather nightly) visits to the dark woods.

Ace figures that they're back to the strength they possessed at this age, which is pretty impressive for this world, but still leaves both boys dissatisfied. They realize that there is a limit to how strong they can get their prepubescent bodies, much to their unhappiness. There are some skills they can work on, though. Haki stands at the forefront. Remembering back to the time with Bluejam and the great fire at Grey-Terminal, Ace knows that Haki, or at least Conqueror's Haki, is possible at this point. Interestingly enough, it seems like Armament will come sooner than anything else. They've had a few close calls where they manage to get a partial manifestation, but nothing too solid.

To practice Armament they have to do a lot of punching. Neither Ace nor Luffy complain about this, although the inhabitants of the forest certainly do. The crashes and explosions spur Hagrid to wonder concernedly about the monsters in the woods when they meet him for tea, and Ace and Luffy just exchange sheepish looks. Their destruction also leads a centaur to confront them and kindly ask that they not destroy so many trees. After the glitter and stars fade from Luffy's eyes, they both apologize to the centaur for the trouble and he's on his way. The downside to this interaction is that they have to be more careful with their strength. Considering they're training Armament, this is not conducive at all. So their training hits a small barrier, leaving both boys frustrated.

It's while they're in that mindset that the brothers stumble across a flyer for a new dueling club. While Ace thinks that he'll always find physical fighting to be most effective and easy, there's no harm in checking the club out and maybe learning a trick or two. The pair grin before dragging Hermione away from her homework to join them.

Her reluctance to abandon her studies vanishes when none other than Gilderoy Lockhart appears on stage.

"Ughhh," Luffy groans. Hermione quickly shushes him as she stands on tip-toe to get a better view.

Both brothers exchange unhappy looks and concede that this was a waste of time, though Ace will admit that seeing Snape send their ostentatious Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher spiraling into the wall was worth the time lost. It isn't particularly the way Ace wants to spend his evening though, so he gestures to the door in askance. Luffy's right about to agree when all the eyes in the room turn on him.

"Eh?" Luffy asks slowly.

"I said, Harry, my boy, why don't you come up here as a volunteer," Lockhart says grandly, willfully ignorant of the bits of rubble and dust on his shoulders from his collision with the wall.

Ace sympathizes, really he does, but that doesn't mean he can't find the utterly repulsed look on his little brother's face amusing as Luffy reluctantly goes onto the stage.

"Atta boy! Now for another volunteer. Ah, well, why don't we pick this young Ravenc—"

"Malfoy should be sufficient," Snape inserts smoothly.

"Er, yes, perfect. He'll do very nicely." Lockhart gestures to both of them. "Now then, I want your wands at the ready, and remember to use only disarming spells."

What that really means for Luffy is no physical attacks. Ace is actually a little anxious to see if his brother will pull it off.

Predictably, the little spar (and it doesn't necessarily fit Ace's definition of the word, but oh well) doesn't go as Lockhart planned. Both Luffy and Malfoy seem to be enjoying casting every other spell besides the disarming one Lockhart and Snape demonstrated. Ace knows it's because Luffy has no intention of ending their fight any earlier than he has to. As for Malfoy, well, it mostly has to do with his inability to land a single hit on Luffy. Ace snorts. He didn't see it going any other way.

It also has a little to do with Luffy's desire to experiment with the different spells they've learned. Seeing as they're still only second years, their repertoire isn't exactly extensive, which just means Luffy gets creative with _Wingardium Leviosa_ and _Flipendo._ When Malfoy returns to the ground from his impromptu flight and subsequent impression of a piñata, he's absolutely livid.

Face curled with fury as Luffy laughs and dances out of the way of yet another spell, Malfoy shouts " _Serpensortia!"_

Ace hadn't expected the appearance of a large black snake on the table, but he's not worried. His brother has wrestled with meaner snakes than that little thing. Unfortunately the serpent doesn't go for Luffy. It heads for Justin Finch Fletchley, a Hufflepuff. Screams ring out in the room, and Snape and Lockhart raise their wands, spells on the tip of their lips—

Ace hears a soft hissing sound. He blinks, uncertain. Because it sounded like it was coming from his little brother, but why—

Luffy hisses towards the snake again, coercing it away from the trembling Hufflepuff. Incredibly, the snake hisses something back, making Luffy laugh brightly before he seemingly replies with another hiss. Luffy is speaking Parseltongue, isn't he...?

Ace face-palms as everything comes together. Typical. Not only is his brother a bloody Parselmouth, but he also seems delighted by the fact. He probably doesn't have the first clue what this means. Before Ace can say something to stop the display, the snake slithers towards Luffy. His brother extends his left hand, and after a moment of hesitation, the black snake curls itself around his brother's palm and slips up his arm, disappearing into his robes.

Luffy's laughter echoes in the absolutely dead silent hall at the ticklish sensation. After a moment, he leaps off the stage and runs up to Ace.

"Ace! Look! It's a talking snake!" Luffy grins. "Say hello!" The head of the snake pokes out from his brother's collar and hisses towards Ace.

The older brother groans. "It isn't a talking snake, you dummy!"

"What? But she's talking to me right now." Luffy's brow furrows and he hisses something unintelligible.

"Idiot. _You're_ a Parselmouth! It means _you_ can talk to snakes." Ace is all too aware of their captive audience, and he desperately wishes they could be having this conversation in private, but that doesn't seem to be happening.

"Oh." Luffy blinks. "That's cool."

Multiple Gryffindors facepalm and groan while a few Slytherins snicker. Everyone else is still too stunned to do anything but stare. Snape seems to have recovered himself though, seeing as he's billowing towards them dramatically.

"I'll be taking that snake, Mr. Potter."

"Eh?! But she likes me!"

"That does not change the fact that you cannot keep... her." Snape sneers.

"Why not?" Luffy frowns heavily. "She can be my pet!"

"The rules state that only a Cat, Owl, or Toad be permitted," Snape informs him snidely.

"Ace has a rat!" Luffy exclaims, almost accusingly. It's a testament to Luffy's consistent strangeness that Snape actually understands who he's talking about.

"Mr. Weasley's rat is not an incredibly deadly viper. Although considering its owner, rabid might not be out of the question." Snape mutters the last part, but not quietly enough for Ace to miss it and he feels a vein in his forehead growing.

"But I already have a name for her." Luffy smiles. "Snakey!"

Silence, followed by giggles, chuckles, and outright guffaws (courtesy of the Weasley twins) come from the student body present.

"That may be the stupidest name I've ever heard for a snake," Snape deadpans. And for the first and last time, Ace actually agrees with the dark haired man.

"She likes it, don't you, Snakey?" Luffy then proceeds to hiss to 'Snakey' excitedly. The hissing stops all of the sound in the hall again as the students resume fidgeting uncomfortably.

"Cat, Owl, or Toad," Snape grits out.

"Hey, Harry." Ace nudges his brother. "You can only have one. So you'd have to give up Hedwig."

Luffy's face falls. After a moment, he reluctantly extends his hand towards Snape, and 'Snakey' slides into his palm from the depths of his robes.

Snape retrieves the snake with a disdainful look to Luffy, who looks very upset. It'd be a moving scene, were Luffy not still hissing what Ace suspected to be tearful goodbyes to the serpent.

After Snape disappears down the hallway, Ace goes up beside his brother and wraps an arm around his shoulder. "I'll get you a snake for your birthday. That way you can keep it over the summer, okay?" Ace says quietly. Luffy gives him a slight small smile before nodding.

Hermione shows exactly how well she knows her friend when she innocently breaks the silence to ask, "Isn't it dinner time?"

Luffy immediately perks up.

"Food!" he cheers. "Race you, Ace!"

And he's gone from the hall, leaving Hermione and Ace to make a considerably more awkward exit, guided by their peers' stares and silence (in addition to the twins' persistent chuckles). He and Hermione jog to the Great Hall, and when Ace spies Luffy sitting at the table, cheerily eating, he walks over and proceeds to bop his brother over the head.

Luffy looks up from his plate curiously. "Did you want me to wait for you? I told you it was a race."

"That's not it, we—" Ace runs a hand through his hair. From the corner of his eyes, he sees students from their little seminar floating in, flocking towards their other friends who weren't present— no doubt to gossip. His suspicions are confirmed when moments later, a considerable number of eyes turn his brother's way.

"Harry, being a Parselmouth is an incredibly rare ability," Hermione starts in lecture mode now that they're away from the crowd.

"Really? That's neat," Luffy comments mildly, biting into a biscuit.

"The most well-known Parselmouths are Salazar Slytherin, the founder of the Slytherin house, and You-Know-Who!" Hermione finishes heatedly.

"Ah." Luffy slows his eating as he processes this.

"People are going to think you're the Heir of Slytherin!" Ace finally says.

Luffy blinks. "That's stupid. I'm not the heir."

Hermione rolls her eyes. " _We_ know that. It's everyone else you should be concerned about."

As Ace predicted, Luffy just laughs the issue off and finishes eating.

"Nothing gets to him, does it?!" Hermione exclaims incredulously, all too aware of the stares their little group is generating.

Ace takes a deep breath and sighs.

"There's nothing for it," he says, calm now.

"At least he's consistent," Hermione manages, still looking slightly cross at Luffy's easy dismissal.

"Isn't that the truth?" Ace grins.

Ace wishes he could say that he manages to keep his cool, relaxed façade up while the topic dies out, but that would be untrue. In the coming week, his frustration mounts as he hears story after story, each more unbelievable than the last about Luffy's 'true origin.' Ace worries about how the rumors are affecting his younger sister, but she doesn't seem too phased. In fact, he doesn't see her very much these days. Hopefully it's because she's made friends already. He should try and check up with her more often.

Speaking of family, Fred and George aren't making the situation any better, capitalizing on the opportunity to make a good joke. They walk in front of Luffy, declaring to make way for 'the Heir of Slytherin.' Admittedly, Luffy doesn't help, because he takes great joy in hissing at people every time the twins make the proclamation.

Though Ace wishes he wouldn't – if only to stop the nefarious rumors – Luffy's cheerfulness is a welcome change from the generally dark campus. Ever since the blood was found on the wall, the school has taken on a gloomier tone. Students have been warned by their professors to stay in groups for their own safety. Ace thinks it's a tad overdramatic, but considering how young all the kids are, he can't fully blame their fear. (Not that he understands, mind you. A mysterious monster roaming the hallways? Sounds awesome to him. Even when he was first twelve, he'd still think it was the best thing to happen to the school since the troll he and Luffy found last Halloween.)

Even as they enter the Great Hall for breakfast, Hermione scolds Luffy for his continual rude behavior towards Lockhart, but Ace knows she's grateful for the normalcy. Noting the muted air surrounding the other tables, where Luffy's lighthearted smiles can't quite reach, Ace knows that all of them could do with a little normalcy.

"I've been thinking," Hermione begins once they sit down, drawing Ace from his thoughts. "Instead of focusing on tracking down the monster, why don't we try to discover who the Heir of Slytherin is?"

"Because humans don't put up as much of a fight as monsters," Luffy answers plainly. Ace shakes his head in disagreement as he starts loading his plate.

"Generally." In their old life, humans were threatening as hell, but here, the mythical creatures are where the good fights are at.

"Generally," Luffy amends.

"Aren't either of you at all curious about the heir?" Hermione presses.

Luffy takes a large bite. "No," he says through a mouthful of food.

"Alright Hermione, out with it," Ace says, eyes keen. "Who do you suspect?"

"I don't suspect anyone," she says sternly. After a moment she leans closer. "I do, however, have a hunch."

Ace barely suppresses a snort at her behavior. "Alright, who's your hunch?"

"Malfoy," Hermione whispers conspiratorially.

Ace and Luffy exchange looks before breaking out into snickers.

"What?!" Hermione's face goes red with frustration.

"Malfoy?" Ace asks, incredulous.

"I don't see why you're laughing," she says primly.

"He's pathetic," Luffy says plainly.

"And he's, like, twelve. Not exactly prime material to be the Heir of Slytherin," Ace adds.

"And he's pathetic." Luffy nods.

Hermione frowns. "Age isn't necessarily relevant."

"Then why not do it last year? Why wait a year if age doesn't matter?"

"Maybe he wanted to be more familiar with the castle," Hermione tries, but Ace can tell that even she's not fully convinced.

"Plus, he's pathetic," Luffy says once more.

"Luffy has a point." Ace shrugs. "I just don't think Malfoy actually has it in him." He's known plenty of killers and violent human beings in his life, and Malfoy doesn't have that same abandon and lack of sympathy that those people have.

Hermione makes a short sound of frustration. "Won't you even consider it?!"

Luffy and Ace exchange noncommittal gestures.

"Well, if not Malfoy, then who could it possibly be?" Hermione asks. It's rhetorical, but both boys answer her anyway.

"Upperclassman," Ace suggests idly.

"A teacher."

Hermione and Ace's eyes whip to Luffy for completely different reasons.

"That's actually a pretty good suggestion, Lu," Ace says thoughtfully.

"It is not!" Hermione splutters, absolutely scandalized.

"Won't you even consider it?" Luffy echoes her earlier words innocently.

The older brother sees their third friend is about to blow her top, and makes a concession.

"Okay, so let's say that maybe Malfoy might possibly potentially be the heir. What do you want to do about it?"

Her eyes light with something eager that makes Ace decidedly uncomfortable.

"I've been reading about a potion that lets the user transform physically to match another human being."

"And?" Luffy asks, not understanding.

"We could pretend to be a few of Malfoy's friends and ask him about the Chamber!"

"...How long have you been sitting on this plan?" Ace asks, running a hand through his hair. Though her willingness to break the rules is refreshing, this kind of plan is incredibly typical for her.

"A few days, but what does that matter?" she asks. Her eyes are triumphant, and Ace has a feeling this can only lead to bad things.

"Do you honestly think Harry could go undercover?"

Hermione winces, and Ace grins.

"Well, we'd both be there to cover for him—" She pauses for a moment. "Where's Harry going?"

Ace turns to his side and notices a gap in the air that should be occupied by his little brother. His suspicions are panning out much, much sooner than he anticipated, as Ace watches with muted horror as his little brother trots over to the Slytherin table, right up to their platinum blond classmate. Malfoy greets his little brother with something likely derisive, but Luffy remains unfazed. After the blond finishes talking, Luffy opens his mouth, and even though Ace can't hear what he's saying, he already knows.

The Slytherin table goes dead silent, and several of the surrounding people's mouths fall open at the straightforwardness of Luffy's question. In direct reaction, the other tables fall quiet, watching curiously what's going down at the Slytherin table.

"What?!" Malfoy asks incredulously.

Luffy frowns. "I asked if you were the Heir of Slytherin." In the sudden silence, the words are like a shout.

"Hurry, go calm them down," Hermione urges.

Ace stands up and makes a b-line to his brother. Time to diffuse the situation before it escalates too much.

"What business of it is yours, Potter?!" Malfoy spits.

"Just curious," Luffy replies simply.

"I don't owe a _mudblood_ like you anything!" Malfoy says with a sneer. Somehow, the already quiet hall gets even more silent. Maybe that's just Ace though, because all he hears is the blood rushing through his ears.

"Yes, I asked my father about your mother. Muggleborn. It's disgusting! The rumors about you being the heir to Slytherin are a joke!"

"Huh?" Luffy tilts his head.

Malfoy laughs nastily. "Of course a _mudblood_ like you wouldn't even know what I'm talking about!" The Slytherin table is quick to echo the sentiment. It only makes Ace's hands clench. By the time he reaches Malfoy, he has two perfect fists ready at his side.

"What did you say?" Ace asks lowly, dangerously.

Malfoy arches an eyebrow. "What's it matter to you? Oh, that's right, your parents are blood-traitors, aren't they? Muggle-lovers."

"I asked. What. You called. My brother." Ace states lowly.

"Brother? Doesn't your family have enough children?" Malfoy asks. More laughter. "Doubt you can afford another."

Suddenly, his fists don't seem adequate for the job. Quick as a flash, he grabs his wand from his robe.

Malfoy draws out his own, a challenge in his eyes.

"What did you call him?" Ace asks one more time.

" _Mudblood."_ Malfoy draws the word out with a foul grin. "Wouldn't be surprised to find out your family has mud in their blood too. After this generation, certainly. No proper pureblood would marry into a family like yours. So I suppose it's fitting that he's your broth—"

With a single thought, flames gather around the two of them. Screams and gasps of panic resound from the hallway. And suddenly, there is no laughter. Malfoy's eyes are blown wide with fear as he looks to either side and finds only the thick, searing embrace of flames. Nothing from outside the fire can be seen, and only shrieks of panic can be heard.

Ace walks up to him slowly, predatorily, with a promise of _pain_ in his eyes.

"Listen to me, Malfoy," Ace says calmly, a single flame dancing idly in his palm. "If I ever hear you talk about my family like that or call my brother mudblood again, they're going to have to cast an identification spell on your ashes to find out who you are when I'm done with you."

"M-my f-f-father—"

"You really think I give a fuck about who your father is?" Ace leans in close, bringing the flame up with him so it hovers just beside Malfoy's cheek, singeing a few blond hairs.

" _Never_ speak about my family like that again. Or your parents will need to find a new heir for their fortune."

Malfoy nods hastily, tears hovering on the edges of his eyes.

" _Aqua Eructo!"_

Suddenly, a torrent of water shoots out at them, extinguishing the flames. Ace smothers the flame in his palm. He shakes his wet hair out before examining the rest of the hall. Everyone's eyes are wide, staring at him with shock and fear— well, everyone except the rest of the Weasley family whose mouths are open with surprise, Hermione, who looks pissed, and his little brother who's smiling at him.

He finds almost every professor lined up in front of him. It's McGonagall who has her wand extended towards them. Beside him, Malfoy collapses, trembling. Ace doesn't spare him a glance.

"What is the meaning of this!?" she demands sharply.

Malfoy starts muttering accusatory things his direction, but his volume hasn't come back to him yet, so they're mostly whispers.

"Malfoy called Harry a mudblood," Ace explains.

"And so you cast a high level fire spell and almost burn this building down?!" she cries.

"I—" Ace is about to say 'hell yeah,' when his eyes meet Katie Bell's, and he suddenly realizes that if he gets in trouble he'll miss their first quidditch match. He should probably at least try to get out of it. Not like he can dig himself any deeper.

"I didn't do anything," he lies, straight-faced. From the floor, Malfoy splutters, and dozens of other students are clamoring over each other to explain what they each saw.

"Enough." Snape's dark tone cuts through the hallway. A sly look enters his eyes that Ace does not like. "There are easier ways to settle this matter. Wand, Weasley," he orders, holding out his hand.

Ace doesn't know what's going on, but reluctantly extends his mangled willow wand to the professor. Snape looks disdainfully at the magic tape holding it together, but points his own black wand towards it.

" _Prior Incantato."_ A malicious grin spreads over the potion's professor's face... but after a moment it falters. Because a wispy image of a feather appears in front of Ace's wand. He frowns, and casts it again. Another feather appears.

" _Prior Incantato, Prior Incantato, Prior Incantato!"_ Feather after feather appears. It doesn't mean anything to Ace, but from the bemused looks on the professors' and some of the upper class students' faces, it means something to them.

" _Prior Incantato—"_

"That's enough, Severus."

Every head whips around to Dumbledore, who silently entered the room during the spectacle. The professors quickly part, allowing him to the front where the drama is taking place.

"Suffice to say, young Mr. Weasley has not cast a fire enchantment any time recently." Dumbledore looks piercingly at him over his half-moon spectacles. Ace keeps his expression flat, and eyes forward.

"We saw him draw his wand," Severus snaps.

"Oi! Malfoy drew his wand too!" Fred pipes up from the Gryffindor side of the room. The rest of the table is quick to back him up.

"Silence!" Snape barks. He turns back to his superior with a much more controlled tone. "Surely you don't think Mr. Malfoy has anything to do with it."

"I do not think anything. As it is unlikely that Mr. Weasley cast a silent and wandless high level fire spell, we can only assume he is innocent." Dumbledore raises a hand when Severus opens his mouth to protest. "Innocent until proven guilty, Severus."

"Is anyone hurt?" McGonagall asks, interrupting the staring contest between the headmaster and potions professor.

She receives murmurs of 'no' and shakes of heads.

"Very good." Dumbledore nods. "Then I think it best if all the students head back to their dorms to regroup before class. This can be investigated further later, but as no one is currently aware of any injuries, we shouldn't keep them here any later. Classes await." Turning his pale blue eyes towards the student body, he says, "Dismissed."

Everyone starts with surprise, before scrambling out of their seats and congregating into little groups. They're whispering, but Ace can practically hear every word being said. He rolls his eyes. At least Luffy isn't the center of attention this time. Speaking of, his brother is standing before a malevolent looking potions professor with his hand extended.

"Wand?"

Severus looks about ready to give him a piece of his mind, but McGonagall's stern gaze keeps his jaw firmly in place. He shoves the wand into Luffy's hand before spinning on his heel and disappearing down the hallway. Luffy then happily returns it to his brother.

McGonagall then turns to them and says quietly, but seriously, "I don't know what happened here, boys, but I don't want to see a repeat incident. Violence against another student can warrant expulsion. And I don't mind telling you that after your stunt earlier this year, I'd be much less inclined to forgive another incident like this."

"Yes, Professor," Ace and Luffy say in tandem. With a curt nod, she too heads out the doors. Most everyone has emptied out of the Great Hall, except Hermione, who's waiting for them by the Gryffindor table, toe tapping impatiently and arms crossed.

"That was so incredibly irresponsible of you, Ron!" she hisses as they head out of the Great Hall.

"I know, I know." It was probably a little far considering, as he said earlier, Malfoy is only twelve. Ace is impressed he didn't shit his pants, to be frank.

"I told you to calm them down, not start a fire!" she continues.

"We didn't start the fire. It was always burning since the world's been turning," Luffy quips plainly.

Ace blinks as Hermione's face becomes sourer.

"Harry, now is not the time for jokes!"

"What—" Ace begins.

"Muggle thing," Hermione says, waving the question away. "It doesn't matter. What _does_ , is your behavior! You could've been expelled."

"You heard what he called Harry," Ace protests mildly.

She bites her lip. "I did."

"What's mudblood mean?" Luffy asks.

"It's a derogatory way of referring to people with nonmagical blood. Muggleborns, like me, or halfbloods with only one magical parent. They call them dirty blood," Hermione explains.

"Rude!" Luffy exclaims, looking rather irritated now that he understands. Ace knows that had he not already gotten payback, Luffy would turn right around and find the blond Slytherin.

"I'm not going to let him call my friends that." Ace shrugs his shoulders and says to Hermione, "If he'd said it to you, I'd have done the same thing."

Her face glows and a wide smile spreads over her lips. After a moment, Hermione catches herself and reigns her expression back to a scolding air.

"Still incredibly irresponsible," she says again. Ace can only smile.

"What's this, Fred? Our little brother is getting into fights?"

Ace, Luffy, and Hermione whip around to find Fred and George waiting by the entrance of the Great Hall for them. Between the twins is a very upset looking Percy.

"I dunno George. Seems awfully unlike him."

"But he's got a temper, that he does," George points out, nudging Percy.

"Indeed he does," Fred agrees, poking Percy's shoulder.

"Remember the time we turned his stuffed animal into a spider?" Nudge.

"Wouldn't talk to us for ages." Poke.

"Fire's new though." Nudge.

"So is tricking snippy-Snape like that." Poke.

"We couldn't be prouder," they finished as one and jab Percy in unison.

Their older brother snaps and smacks both their hands away. Face red with anger and clearly flustered, he turns to Ace.

"Ron, I hope you know how inappropriate your behavior was today! Threatening a fellow classmate! It's a miracle that no House Points were taken away. If I ever see you engaging in this kind of behavior I will be certain to take them away myself. It was just so—so—"

"Incredibly irresponsible," Ace finishes dryly for his brother.

"Exactly! Be aware that our parents will be hearing about this. Now hurry on back. I've a meeting to attend with the other prefects. Stay out of trouble." With one last stern look, Percy takes off the opposite direction, Head Boy pin gleaming in the torchlight.

Ace shakes his head. Percy's unique for sure. Though he really hopes Percy wasn't serious about telling their parents. Howlers should have a one year use clause.

"Pray tell, little brother, how exactly you pulled that one off?" Fred asks draping an arm over Ace's shoulders.

"Pulling the wool over Snape's eyes like that—" George starts, arm over his opposite side.

"And beating that enchantment?"

"Share with the class!" George finishes.

Ace snorts before worming out of their grasps.

"Tell you how I did that? As if; you two get into enough trouble without adding fire to the mixture."

Hermione nods approvingly while Luffy lets out a cheerful laugh at their downtrodden expressions. They perk up immediately, and turn their attentions on Luffy.

"Ronnie-kins is keeping so many secrets from us Fred." George sighs.

"First the secret behind his last trick—"

"And now the existence of our long lost brother!"

Ace flushes a little as he remembers his slip, but shrugs the feeling off. He's glad that everyone now knows not to mess with Luffy anymore. Besides, it feels good to claim him again. Beating someone up on his behalf doesn't seem right if he can't excuse his actions by explaining the right of older brothers to defend their little brothers. Luffy smiles wider.

"He might as well be a member. Humiliating the Malfoys is now a family tradition," Ace says, grinning.

"Oh?" Fred inquires.

"Do go on," his twin encourages.

"You remember that fuss in the papers about Mr. Malfoy casting on a child?"

Their eyes widen with remembrance and their combined gaze darts to Luffy.

"Him?"

"Oh yeah. He screamed 'stranger danger' so loud, they probably heard him in the deepest Gringotts vaults."

"Welcome to the family, Harry," George declares holding out his hand to shake. Fred extends his over his brother's, making Luffy twist to shake both of them at the same time.

"Ginny's going to be delighted," Fred says as they head up the enchanted staircases.

"Or will she? You know how society views those kinds of relationships between family members," George says, tone dramatic.

"You mean you still haven't told them... about us?!" Fred asks, gasping.

Ace rolls his eyes at the display. He's all too happy to reach the Fat Lady and end the twins' little production.

"Wattlebird," he says shortly. The minute the portrait opens, Ace steps through it— and into a mob of people. Dozens of questions ring out, one on top of the other in a cacophony of sounds. Ace blinks before sighing and pushing his way through the throng, ignoring the disappointed exclamations as he tugs his little brother along. Finally they reach their door and Ace is glad to shut it behind them. Or at least he would be, if Neville, Dean, and Seamus weren't waiting to pounce on him.

Before they can say anything, Luffy opens his mouth.

"I'm ready. Let's go to class," he announces.

"But—" Neville starts.

"Ready," Luffy cuts him off.

Seamus tries, "We just—"

"Class." Luffy intones.

"Harry, come on—" Dean is equally unsuccessful.

"Now." His blank gaze and flat tone brook no argument.

"You heard him," Ace grins as he grabs his textbooks for Transfiguration and Potions.

Three dispirited youths abandon the attempt with low, disappointed mutters.

Ace knows that Potions with Snape today will be a hellish experience, but Merlin, the fearful look on Malfoy's face was so worth it. Exchanging one last grin with his brother, they head out for the day.

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 **See you all next week...**

 **Leave a review if you like! I'd enjoy reading it~**


	8. ll: Doing What Needs Doing

**Look at me, being all truthful!** **A million thanks to my beta breather, who is too fantastic for words.**

 **And thanks for the wonderful words! It's always good to know people are reading this~**

 **Cheers to: RedHeadsRock1010, DoctorKnight, laurie199609, THE END786, Zaralann, Ender the multiverse Detective, The Keeper of Worlds, Guest 2 (11/08/16), Allykrau, Livetheluffy, WriterKillsReader, Guest (11/09/16), FireD. Rion, BBLimits, chiharuSAICHI, Sailor Pandabear, and Shadowstalker (11/11/16)!**

 **Thanks for all the continued support!**

* * *

 _Chapter 8: Doing What Needs Doing_

* * *

It's amusing and a little incredible to Ace that a few days after Hermione said they should go after the Heir of Slytherin, he and Luffy stumble across a magic diary that seems to have all the answers, although 'stumble' might not be the right word. 'Shepherded by the voice only Luffy can hear' fits better. Ace is glad that Hermione was at the library at the time. He's sure if the voice continues on much longer, she'll inevitably tell a professor. Having his brother shuttered up in St. Mungo's isn't really okay with Ace, so he's more than fine keeping these little incidents secret from her.

In this instance, they keep the magic dairy from her too. There's no way they can explain why they were in the closed off first floor girls' bathroom without inciting her curiosity about how exactly they ended up there. So while not fully happy about excluding her from their most recent find, both agree it's for the best.

Having said that, they could maybe do with her help. Because while Ace can puzzle out that the diary is enchanted, he has no idea what it does exactly, nor why the voice led his brother to finding it. This drives Ace to the very unpleasant task of independent study.

"Ace, let's just go to lunch," Luffy whines.

Ace feels slightly guilty about keeping his brother from food while he reads up on enchanted objects in the library. The library is completely empty because everyone else is currently eating, which is why Ace picked this time in the first place. Any other time and Hermione could potentially be in here and they can't have that if they want to keep this a secret from her. If she knew he's studying something outside of class, she'd get suspicious for sure. She'll already be pretty suspicious that they aren't at lunch, but he can always claim they were getting a bit more quidditch practice in between their classes. So long as it isn't academically related, they can get away with their research. Luffy has never been good at studying, so instead he's sitting at the table, idly paging through the blank diary as the older brother searches.

"Just a few more minutes, Lu." Ace runs a hand over the spines of the books on the shelves, trying to divine which one will be helpful.

"You said that a few minutes ago," Luffy mutters laying his head down on the open book.

"You can go down you know, I'm not keeping you here," Ace points out, pulling out _The Wizard Who Mistook his Wife for a Hat and Other Magical Mysteries_ from the shelf.

"She'll know," Luffy says simply, voice muffled by the pages. That's fair, so Ace shrugs haplessly.

"Only a bit longer." Ace skims the table of contents on the first few pages, but doesn't find anything remotely related to enchanted diaries.

"So hungry..."

Ace turns and sees the predictable sight of his brother drooling on the book.

"Oh c'mon, Lu. Don't drool on the book." Ace goes over to the table and pulls the diary out from under his brother's head. He's expecting the pages to be wet and gross, but all he finds are the same dry, yellow tinged pages of the diary.

He's still looking at it in fascination when curved script suddenly appears on the page.

' _Hungry?'_

Ace starts and drops the book on the table. Luffy eagerly pulls it closer, eyes going wide.

"Ace, the magic book! It can read my mind!"

Ace snorts after gathering himself. "I think it has more to do with reading your drool. I wonder..." Going into his messenger bag, Ace pulls out a small ink pot and a quill. After dipping the quill in the pot his hand hovers over the page indecisively. A drop of ink falls from the tip of his quill and slowly fades away.

"So cool!" Luffy exclaims.

' _Hello?'_ Another line of curved script unveils itself on the page.

Ace slowly lowers the quill to the page.

'Who are you?' he writes. His own handwriting fades away, and after a few moments the book replies.

' _Tom Marvolo Riddle.'_ There's a pause. ' _May I ask who I'm speaking to?"_

Again, Ace hesitates, not sure how much he can trust the enchanted object. Luffy takes the initiative and takes the quill from his brother's hand and writes.

'I'm Harry. The person writing before me was Ron.'

' _It's a pleasure to meet you, Harry, Ron.'_

'You too!' Luffy grins.

Ace reclaims the quill and bites his lip before writing. 'Tom, we were wondering if you knew anything about the Chamber of Secrets.'

"Eh? Why would Tom know anything about that?" Luffy asks.

"Think about how we were led to the diary," Ace reminds him. "First the voice led us to the attack on Mrs. Norris, and now a diary of some kind. It's got to be related."

Although the pause between writing is even longer than before, script eventually appears.

' _Perhaps. I do wonder, why are you asking?'_

Ace quickly and efficiently explains the attacks going on at the school and the chicken's blood on the wall.

 _'So it's been opened again.'_

Luffy and Ace exchange excited grins over the book. Finally, they're getting somewhere.

'So you do know about the Chamber.'

' _Indeed, I do. The last time the Chamber was opened was during my fifth year. A girl was murdered. The killer was never found officially.'_

'Officially?' Ace asked.

' _I uncovered the truth and reported the murderer. However, fearing for the school's reputation, the headmaster at the time kept the entire occurrence a secret.'_

'Who was the heir?' Ace scrawls hastily.

' _I can show you, if you like. Come see the truth for yourself.'_

'Show us?' On one hand Ace is thrilled at the opportunity to find out the heir. On the other, his gut is twinging at him, warning him to beware.

' _I'll take you into my memories. Let me show you.'_

Ignorant or uncaring of his brother's confliction, Luffy plucks the quill from Ace's hand and scribbles a quick 'ok.'

"Lu! You—" The rest of Ace's words are cut off by the sudden rapid turning of the pages, as though pushed by a great gust of wind. Before he can react, Ace finds himself tumbling headfirst through the book in a nauseating swirl of color, into what looks like a room. He lands flat on his back on the stone ground, startling him with the sudden and unexpected transition.

"That was cool," Luffy utters picking himself off the floor from beside his brother.

"Luffy, don't agree to something like this so easily! We have no idea who this Tom person is," Ace scolds as he gets to his feet.

"Sorry," Luffy replies flippantly as he looks around the large room. "Where are we?"

"It looks like Hogwarts. Sort of." It could well be a room in the castle, but the thing that tips Ace off that this isn't their Hogwarts is the sepia tone covering the setting.

"Oh, hi!" Luffy waves towards a desk Ace previously overlooked, and the person seated at it. He doesn't recognize the old man sitting there, but they definitely aren't supposed to be here.

"Oh no. Uh, Sir, I'm sorry we've, uh, _barged_ in like this. We had no intention of coming here, honestly. There was this book..." Ace trails off as he receives no sign that the elderly wizard even heard what he was saying.

"Should we leave?" Luffy asks.

Ace nods. "Well, goodbye Sir." Again, not a twitch.

"Maybe he can't hear well?" Luffy suggests. Ace shrugs. As one they turn back to the old wizard.

"Goodbye!" they shout. Feeling foolish, Ace ushers his brother towards the door. Before they can reach the wood, knocks sound from the other side.

"Enter," the elderly wizard at the desk calls. The door swings open, and a dark haired teen around sixteen enters. He sweeps quickly into the room, brushing past Luffy as he goes. The younger boy shudders.

"Ugh. That was cold!"

"Did he... pass through you?" Ace asks.

Luffy pauses for a moment before going to the boy from before and examining him closely.

"Tom, how can I help you?" the old wizard asks.

"That's Tom Riddle. So this is his memory," Ace puzzles out. Curious, he approaches the teen, taking in his attributes.

"Professor, I wanted to ask about—"

"Luffy! Don't do that!" Ace exclaims, smothering the other half of Tom's words. His little brother is sticking his head in and out of Tom's stomach, giggling from the cold sensation.

"Hey, Ace, look. I'm an alien!" Luffy's head emerges from the front of Tom's stomach and he starts making terrible screeching noises.

"Pffft." Ace can't help it, he starts laughing.

"Come on and try it! It feels so weird," Luffy invites, stepping in and out of Tom's figure.

"Ah, no, we can't." Ace shakes his head. "We're here to find out about the Chamber, remember?"

"Oh right..." Luffy trails off, turning his eyes back to Tom and the professor.

Unfortunately, the only thing they catch are the goodbyes the two exchange before Tom excuses himself and leaves the office.

"Shit. We probably missed it." Ace groans.

"Maybe Tom can show it to us again. Let's ask." With that in mind, Luffy heads out the door after the older boy.

"Oi! Lu, he can't hear us!" But his brother is already gone from sight. With a sigh, Ace dashes after him. He catches up momentarily as the other two are descending the staircase into the dungeon. Might as well watch what Tom does next. Considering that they haven't been sent back, it's possible that they haven't seen everything there is yet.

The brothers enter the dim dungeons, watching curiously as Tom presses himself against the wall, moving swiftly and silently through the dark. Eventually Tom stops at a room and slowly opens the door.

"Come on, get in the box. Let's get you out of here."

Ace's brow furrows. That accent sounds so incredibly familiar.

"Hello, Rubeus," Tom greets coolly.

"Hagrid?" Luffy utters with surprise. Ace's eyes widen. Sure enough, as his eyes adjust to the darkness, he sees the larger than average form of their friend whip around and face Tom, face pale. There's something dark and small hiding behind the young groundskeeper, only his large hands keeping it from view.

Luffy and he both numbly watch as Tom and Hagrid argue back and forth. When the creature Hagrid was trying to hide darts out from behind the giant Ace's stomach drops. Both boys lurch forward to seek out the creature, but before they can reach it, the two brothers are flung out of the magic memory, back into the library.

They're utterly silent as they both try and process what they've just seen. Ace opens his mouth, whether to comfort or just question the entire thing, he doesn't know. And won't know, because at that very moment Minerva McGonagall enters the library.

"There you are, Mr. Potter. I've been looking for you all over the castle. While I am glad that you two are keeping up on your studies, you both will be expected to go to classes with or without lunch. Mr. Weasley, there's twenty minutes left for the lunch period, and I suggest you leave now," she instructs. "As for you, Mr. Potter, the headmaster has requested your presence. Come with me, if you would."

Luffy and Ace exchange looks before the dark haired boy follows the professor out of the room.

In the resulting silence, Ace calms down his breathing and tries to rearrange his thoughts. So Hagrid was the one who opened the Chamber? It seems ridiculous to imagine him killing a girl... but it's quite possible that he did it on accident. His eyes drift to the door his little brother just exited from. Ace doesn't know how much Dumbledore is aware of the goings-on of the castle, but he finds it considerably suspicious that right after they find the diary and get their first solid lead, Luffy is called down to the office.

Ace bites his lip. In the past, his brother couldn't lie to save his life. More recently, he's seen Luffy pull off some pretty admirable misdirection, but against a man as perceptive as Dumbledore... The entire thing makes him nervous. After carefully placing the diary back into his satchel, Ace hurries to the dorm room. Stepping through the portrait, he looks around for his older brothers; the twins tend to skip out on lunch early to scheme in peace, without worrying about prefects or other students. As Ace hoped, Fred and George are there and seem to be helping Ginny with a bit of her homework (no doubt with plenty of jibes and jokes sprinkled in between) at a table in the back.

"Fred, George," Ace says hurriedly. "How do I get to Dumbledore's office?"

The two exchange looks.

"What makes you think we'd know the way?" Fred asks.

"We've never done anything bad enough to get summoned there." George pauses. "Yet."

"Oh please, you two know everything about the castle," Ace says. And it's the truth. Fred and George know more secret passages (utilized to maneuver themselves out of professors ways and pop out and scare first years) than Filch, or anyone else in the castle. They even know the way into the kitchen, a secret Luffy and Ace have relentlessly tried to part from the twins for almost two years. The idea of them not knowing the location of Dumbledore's office is a complete joke.

"Why do you need to see Dumbledore?" George asks curiously.

"Something didn't happen to Harry, did it?" Ginny's voice is small.

"No, he's fine," Ace reassured her. "But he got taken there by McGonagall, and I want to make sure he doesn't get lost on his way back." Well, he mostly wants to make sure his little brother is a) alright, and b) hasn't spilled everything they found out from the book. There's no faster way for them to lose their chance at getting the monster themselves.

The twins exchange looks again.

"What?" Ace asks. "What do you know?"

"They found Justin Finch-Fletchley this morning. Petrified, just like the rest," George explains.

Fred continues, "And since he was the one Harry, our Heir of Slytherin, 'threatened' at the dueling club, Dumbledore probably feels obligated to ask him a few questions."

"That's ridiculous!" Ace snaps.

Fred and George hold up their hands.

"Woah, we know that already," George assures him.

"We're just telling you what happened," Fred says.

Ace exhales. "Will you tell me where the office is?"

"Sure." Fred quickly explains the different staircases to take, which corridors to follow, and what statues are landmarks. It's a pleasant surprise to have such thorough directions... if they aren't a joke.

"Thanks," Ace says, running a hand through his hair.

"Stressful, isn't it," George remarks idly.

"Having younger siblings." Fred smirks.

Ace grins. "Not as much as having older ones like you lot." He looks towards Ginny for agreement, but finds her staring intently at his satchel.

"Gin?" he asks with concern. She starts visibly, eyes darting around the room.

"S-sorry. I spaced out a bit," Ginny says a tad shakily.

"Okay. Don't spread yourself too thin though, you're looking a bit tired."

She nods and offers him a slight smile.

"You know what you need, little sister?" Fred asks.

"A good practical joke." George nods in agreement.

"And we have just the one for you. First, we should get some flubberworm mucus..."

Ace shakes his head and walks away, not entirely sure if he wants to know what kind of trouble his older brothers are going to get their sister into. After exiting through the portrait, Ace heads up the first flight of stairs on his right, and slowly makes his way to Dumbledore's office.

He ends up in a fairly innocuous corridor on the third floor. The only noteworthy detail is the ugly enchanted stone gargoyle nestled in an enclave on the wall. Deciding to trust that the twins haven't led his astray, Ace leans against the wall and settles in to wait.

Thankfully, he doesn't have to wait long, because a few minutes later, the gargoyle starts slowly rotating, revealing a staircase. Luffy descends after a moment, looking bemused.

"Harry!" Ace moves off the wall and meets his brother half way.

"Oh. Hi, Ace."

"What happened?" Ace asks. "Why did he want to see you?"

Luffy opens his mouth, but his eyes wander towards the gargoyle, who's raising a stone eyebrow at the pair of them.

"Let's head to the library. Lunch is over and we have a free period, so Hermione's probably there. We have a lot to catch her up on," Ace suggests. After the revelation about Hagrid, they both know they need to come clean to their third friend. Ace is hoping that Hermione will be able to shed some light on the issue.

Luffy nods and the two begin walking. Once they're sufficiently far from the statue, Luffy starts explaining.

"I got called to his office but he wasn't there at first. Instead there was this cool bird! It was a phonics and—"

"Phoenix," Ace corrects.

"Right. Well he set himself on fire and I thought I killed Dumbledore's bird, but it just because a little bird in the ashes. Then there were all these cool devices that spun and..."

Ace's little brother's voice fades a little as the memory of another phoenix comes to mind. Ace remembers the last time he saw Marco—

 _Deflecting the attacks of admirals_

 _weighted down by seastone cuffs_

 _crying out to save Po—_

Ace... Ace hopes Marco made it out alive, though he's well aware that he'll never know. Shaking the morbid thoughts from his mind, Ace turns his attention back to his little brother who's still talking about all the things he saw in Dumbledore's office.

"He called you down to talk to you, right?" Ace interrupts. "What did he say?"

"Well, he talked about his phoenix a lot, which was pretty cool. Then he asked me if there was anything I wanted to tell him," Luffy explains.

"What did you say?" Ace asks anxiously.

"Nothing. I didn't really have anything I needed to say to him."

"So you didn't tell him about the diary or Hagrid?" Ace smiles. "Color me impressed."

". . . Oh yeah. I forgot about that stuff. Do you think that stuff counts?"

Ace sighs and shakes his head fondly. Luffy's luck clearly hasn't faded from his last lifetime. The brothers soon reach the library. Sure enough, they find their brown-haired friend set up at one of the tables, head buried in a book. Ace takes a seat across from her and Luffy sits beside him. Both of them exchange nervous looks.

"Are you finally going to tell me what you've been up to?" Hermione asks coolly, not looking up from her book.

"W-what makes you think we've been up to anything?" Luffy hedges.

Glancing up, she pins them with narrow eyes. "Ever since Tuesday you two have been sneaking around. How did you think I wouldn't notice? I'm not an idiot," she says curtly.

"We don't think you're an idiot," Ace replies quickly. Luffy nods emphatically.

"Then why are you two hiding things from me?" she asks, making Ace wince. Because there is genuine hurt in her eyes.

"Look, Hermione, we're sorry." Ace decides to just be honest. "Harry was hearing the voice again and I was kind of worried that you were going to report him." Her eyes soften and there's a soft mix of reproach and guilt within.

"I apologize if I caused you to worry. I would never do anything to hurt Harry," she says earnestly. Ace sighs slightly. That's the best they're going to get from her at this point. "Why are you telling the truth now?"

"Well, the voice led us to this diary—"

"A diary?" she asks, dismay switching to curiosity. Ace smiles at her a little before pulling the small black book from his satchel.

She takes it into her hands eagerly and flips it open. After a moment of perusal, she frowns. "It's blank."

"We thought so too, but—"

"Oh, it's enchanted, isn't it?" Hermione asks, eyes alight.

Ace nods. "I reached the same conclusion. I was researching it earlier today when Harry discovered the trick of it."

He reaches into his bag and pulls out a quill and inkpot. Taking the diary from Hermione, he opens it to the first page and writes, 'Tom?'

The text fades, and a moment later the words 'Yes?' appear.

"Oh wow..." Hermione utters, staring at the letters with fascination.

"Yeah, there seems to be some kind of consciousness tied to the diary," Ace explains.

"And guess what? Tom was here when the Chamber was last opened!" Luffy exclaims.

"Then he can tell us everything that happened!" she says excitedly. Her excitement quells when Madam Prince appears and shushes her sternly.

"He offered to show Harry and I what he witnessed last time," Ace explains quietly though intently once the librarian drifts away. "Then he pulled us into a memory and— well, it seems like Hagrid was the last person to open the Chamber."

"Hagrid?!" Hermione questions, alarmed.

"That was my reaction too, but if you think about it, it sort of makes sense. Hagrid's love for creatures definitely extends to the rare and dangerous. Remember Fluffy? He probably just wanted to spend time with the creature but it got out of hand. He'd never report it though, because they'd want to kill it. Hagrid would try and handle it himself. Things get out of control and well, you know how it ended." Ace finishes.

"That makes a startling amount of sense." Hermione sighs.

"Mmm, no," Luffy says after a moment of deliberation.

"Harry?" Hermione asks.

"Not Hagrid," Luffy announces decisively.

"You can't say that for sure, Harry," Ace replies.

Luffy's face twists slightly. "Hagrid's good."

"I know that, Luffy—"

"He wouldn't do something like that."

Ace runs a hand through his hair. "But he might've just thought it was another fantastic beast, like Fluffy."

"No."

Ace growls a little. "Luffy, you can't just rule him out."

"Yes I can," he says stubbornly.

"No, you can't," Ace says firmly.

"Can so," Luffy counters, a challenge in his eyes.

"Can n— I'm not going to argue this with you, Luffy!" Ace snaps, frustrated. "Can't you just consider the possibility?"

"It wasn't him," Luffy repeats again.

"You're being incredibly pig-headed!"

"Not Hagrid."

"Ugh!" Ace exclaims in frustration. He senses Mrs. Prince coming up to scold them, but he cuts her off, uncharacteristically rude.

"I was just about to leave." He shoots a dark look to his brother who returns the gaze just as solidly while Hermione looks between the two of them worriedly.

With a final huff, Ace leaves the library, diary in hand and head hot.

Why is it that his brother never listens to him? Ace never said that Hagrid was the culprit, but it's an undeniable possibility. Well, undeniable for anyone with common sense. So not Luffy. But then again, he's always been this way. What else was Ace expecting? He always believes the best of his friends. It's one of the many things that makes Luffy so wonderful...

Well, the world isn't always a kind place. His dealings with Teach have taught him that sometimes investigating friends it necessary— before it's too late. Luffy hasn't discovered that yet, so Ace will do the difficult deed in place of his brother. With that thought in mind, Ace decides to visit the groundskeeper himself and get the whole thing cleared up. He heads down one of the moving flights of stairs and turns the corner. As he starts walking down the corridor, he knows something isn't _right_ , his instincts pick up the danger in the air and his hair stands on end. Left hand formed in a fist around the book, and right gripping his wand, Ace slowly turns the next corner. His hands relax immediately as he spies his sister.

"Ginny? What are you doing here? You gave me a right scare." Wait, something isn't right. Her eyes are glazed over. He walks towards her concernedly and shakes her shoulders, then freezes mid-shake when he hears a familiar sound. Like air escaping a can of soda pop— only now does it become clear what the sound actually is.

"It's a snake..." Ace utters looking up at the ceiling. "The creature is a snake. That's why Lu— Gin, we've got to go, it isn't safe!" He tugs on her arm, but she doesn't budge. He turns around to lift her in a bloody fireman's carry, when he sees the shockingly malevolent expression on her face. The next thing he knows she's hissing, and when he turns around Ace finds himself face to face with bright, golden eyes. After that, everything goes dark.

* * *

Hermione is smarter than your average twelve-year-old. Anyone who speaks to her for more than ten minutes can tell you that. On top of that, she's well aware of her own intelligence. When she first came to Hogwarts she would have argued that, in IQ at least, she was among the greatest intellects at the school. Having spent over a year actually attending the school, she starts to understand that there is a lot she doesn't know. And it's not just in terms of magic, because ever since reading _Seven Thousand Years of Spells,_ by Miranda Goshawk, she knows magic is limitless and unfathomable. But her realization has something more to do with Ron and Harry, her two best friends.

In the summer of her eleventh year, before she left for school, she used to imagine what Hogwarts would be like. Hermione pictured herself at the side of intellects and scholars, illuminating the mysteries of the magical world. They treated her with respect, and paid attention when she spoke, because they realized that quite often she has very smart things to say. Looking back she knows it was a tad childish to imagine something so pretentious and ridiculous. There is nothing like that at Hogwarts for her. Instead, she has two argumentative, often rude boys who ignore her more than they listen to her.

Still, it's better than she could have ever imagined, even if they _do_ make her feel incredibly stupid at times. She doesn't mean about book smarts though. Ron has a good head on his shoulders (though he really could do with spending more time on his studies), and Harry... well he isn't the brightest crayon in the box. Although they lack book smarts, there's something more to both of them, something inexplicable.

She read a book over break about the theory of multiple intelligence, and after considering the theory and applying it to her life, she has to admit that she may be outmatched by the two boys. Ron and Harry are both kinetically intelligent, if their skilled flying is anything to go by. In manner of emotions, Harry is surprisingly perceptive when it matters and Ron is there to cover him when it doesn't. In social terms they each have a very honest, charming way with people entirely different from each other, but both are successful. Hermione has a feeling that if they wanted to, the pair could have half the house as their good friends.

As it is, they seem more interested in each other and cultivating their weirdness (at the moment, they have most of the school used to their bizarre antics, which is an impressive feat all on its own). She knows that they're both incredibly intelligent boys, just in ways not measured by tests and essays. To be honest, she's oddly proud and relieved at times that they picked her to be their other close friend. She's accepted long ago that she will never get as close to them as they are with each other. But that's okay, because she knows them well enough. It warms her.

She can barely fathom the two apart from each other. Which is why when Ron storms out of the library, she finds herself floundering. Harry seems oddly calm for someone who just had an argument, but she supposes when one has such rigid beliefs as him, it's easy to take solace in them. Hermione herself doesn't think Hagrid would do something like this, but Ron made a very convincing argument. It would be very like Hagrid to let his love of magical creatures lead him astray.

"Harry?" Hermione asks, biting her lip. "Should we go after him?"

Harry shakes his head. "Let's work on our potions essay. Ace'll need someone to copy off of when he gets back."

The familiarity of his tone and words soothe Hermione considerably.

"Well it won't be off of me! I have academic integrity." Hermione can only hope that Ron will be calm when he returns and everything can go back to normal.

Her wish... is not answered. Only forty minutes after they start writing their essays (mind you that's about two hours in Harry time), McGonagall appears in the door of the library, lips tights and eyes suspiciously watery.

She calls Hermione and Harry down to the infirmary, and vaguely tells them it's to do with Ron. Hermione's stomach drops. It can't be good.

Harry is unusually quiet as they climb the stairs to the infirmary. Hermione has a sneaking suspicion why they're being called up, but it's too frightening for her to fully face, and she shies away from the truth. Because Ron's a pureblood, so surely... As the pair arrive in front of the door though, there's no ignoring it. McGonagall departs with worried eyes as Harry firmly pushes the wood open and steps in. Madam Pomfrey immediately intercepts them before they can look around.

"I'm afraid that Ron has had an unfortunate accident on the second floor," she begins, eyeing them both warily in case they start breaking down, Hermione supposes. Seeing they remain calm, the nurse continues, "He's been petrified."

Hermione's heart skips a beat at hearing the news she so dreaded to acknowledge. Her eyes flip towards Harry, whose expression is deceptively calm.

"Where is Ace?"

Hermione distantly realizes that the only reason Madam Pomfrey knows who Harry's talking about is because of the regularity the pair find themselves in here. Madam Pomfrey gestures for them to follow her. She leads them towards one of the dozen or so occupied beds in the infirmary. At the very end of the row on the right side they come across Ron. His face is eerily still, captured in a moment of surprise. Like all of the other victims of petrification, his arms and legs are frozen. It's unnatural, but it's nowhere as disturbing as the blankness in his usually perennially animated eyes.

After taking everything in, Harry frowns before going over and prodding Ron's side. For a solid minute Hermione watches as Harry pokes and prods their friend, trying to illicit some kind of reaction. All the while, Madam Pomfrey casts Harry concerned looks. Hermione feels water welling up in her eyes. Because this is what Harry does when Ron falls asleep while eating or in class. He pokes and prods until Ron sits up groggily and bats his hand away, saying "Alright, alright, I'm up—" But that won't happen here. He's... not just going to wake up this time, is he?

"H-Harry, stop." Her words don't seem to make an impact, and Hermione scrambles for a way to reach him and stumbles across the name Ron sometimes utters accidently, affectionately.

"Luffy, please."

Her friend pauses, before turning blank green eyes towards her. What she sees inside their depths is something unfathomable to her, so convoluted and _intense_ that her twelve-year-old mind doesn't have the capacity to understand. She swallows hard and forces herself to keep eye-contact.

"We can't do anything for him here," Hermione utters, pleased when her voice barely quivers with emotion.

Harry nods, and she's glad to see a hint of light enter his green irises. With one last look back at their redheaded friend, he turns and exits the hospital wing, fists clenched tightly.

Hermione trots to catch up with his quick gait. "Where are we going?"

"I'm going to ask some of the portraits around the second floor if they saw anything."

Hermione bites her lip. If it were that easy, the school would've had the murderer pinned months ago, but most of the figures in the paintings have fled since the attacks started. She understands why he'll go there anyways. Feeling idle is atrocious. With that thought in mind, Hermione decides to comb the library again for any clue about the Chamber of Secrets. She's been over it again and again, but— well, if she just sits still and thinks about everything that's happening right now, she'll probably cry.

"I'm going to go to the library. Maybe there's something there that can help," Hermione says, before walking the other way.

Her hand is caught mid-turn and she meets the firm gaze of her friend.

"I'm coming with."

"Harry, the portraits—"

"Hermione," he says, and it's an order and a plea for understanding at the same time. In his eyes, she sees the truth— _don't leave._

Hermione nods slowly. "Okay." The pair head back down the hall towards the library, Hermione's hand still in Harry's.

She winces slightly when his grip tightens suddenly.

"Harry? What is it?"

"The voice," he grits out. "So annoying!"

Hermione is still disconcerted that he's hearing something completely different. All she hears is the low sound of a wailing ghost and the hissing of the pipes—

Her mouth falls open as everything clicks into place.

"Harry, try talking to the voice," she urges hastily.

He frowns but looks up and replies— and yes! It's a hiss.

"I know what the creature is!" she exclaims.

Harry blinks. "Really?"

"Yes. Let's go to the library, I need to do some research." This time she tightens her grasp on Harry's hand and leads the charge to the library.

By the time they enter, she's out of breath and panting. Mrs. Prince gives them disdainful looks, but for once, Hermione couldn't care less. She speeds to the shelves on magical creatures, tomes that she paged through before in her initial survey of the subject. Now, with a creature in mind, her focus sharpens. After scanning the titles, she pulls out _Serpents throughout the Ages from A to Z._

Harry looks at it curiously. "A snake?"

"Yes, it has to be!" Hermione says as she hurriedly sits down and flips past the introduction and table of contents. "Just now, when you were talking back to the voice, it was in Parseltongue! You didn't realize it, but you were speaking to a snake! That's why you're the only one who could hear it and understand it."

She skims the Greek agathodaemons, and the akurra from South Africa. She reaches the 'b's and her hands still. Harry hovers over her shoulder and he murmurs aloud,

"The basilisk?"

Hermione nods and hastily reads the text aloud. "Of the many fearsome beasts and monsters that roam our land, there is none more curious or more deadly than the basilisk, known also as the King of Serpents. This snake, which may reach gigantic size and live many hundreds of years, is born from a chicken's egg, hatched beneath a toad. Its methods of killing are most wondrous, for aside from its deadly and venomous fangs, the basilisk has a murderous stare, and all who are fixed with the beam of its eye shall suffer instant death..."

"But people are being petrified, not killed," Harry points out.

"Maybe— maybe—" Hermione's mind dashes. "Maybe they didn't make direct eye contact? Yes! That makes sense! There was a puddle of water by Mrs. Norris, Colin saw it through his camera, the other two could've seen a reflection of it on a torch, or armor, or something, you know?! It's entirely possible!"

"This is great! Now we can—"

As a shadow appears, blocking the light from the window, the two friends shudder. Sure enough, Mrs. Prince is right behind them, looking thoroughly displeased.

"Out," she orders curtly.

Hermione nods hastily. "Just let me put this book back." As she goes behind the bookshelf, Hermione takes a deep breath, braces herself, and _tear_ _s_ the page out of the book. Adrenaline is coursing through her system. She just did that, didn't she? Oh Merlin. If Madam Prince finds out she'll be banned from the library forever. Hermione shakes herself quickly. Now is not the time— not while they're on the cusp of a breakthrough! After folding it up, stuffing it in her robe, and hastily putting the book back in its spot, she heads towards Harry and they walk out the door. They stop at the end of the corridor, near the statue of the one-eyed witch tucked into an alcove. Neither of them have the patience nor time to walk back to the common room. Sufficiently far away from the library, Hermione pulls out the page and unfolds it and they scan it hungrily.

"There's one thing I don't get." Hermione shakes her head as she examines the text for a clue. "How is the basilisk getting around?"

"The walls?" Harry suggests.

She levels him with a deadpan stare. "The walls are made of stone, Harry."

"But that's where I hear the voice coming from," he murmurs sullenly. "I still don't know how all of you missed the hissing sounds."

"Oh, the pipes in the school are always hissing," Hermione answers distractedly. "They're very old and—" She cuts herself off and turns to her friend. "Harry, you're a genius!"

"Huh?" he utters, bemused.

"The basilisk has been moving through the pipes!"

Realization dawns in his mind and his eyes are wide.

"We need to tell McGonagall. Or Lockhart, I'm sure _he'd_ know what to do," Hermione urges firmly.

Her words earn her a sideways look from Harry.

"What? Why?"

"Because she's an adult! She knows how to deal with these kinds of things! And Lockhart's an impressive wizard. If you cracked open a book for once in your life you'd—"

"Shh!" Harry leans in close and puts his hand over her mouth, silencing her. Quietly, he pulls Hermione behind the statue of the one-eyed witch.

She pulls his hand off of her mouth and is about to demand the reason behind his actions, when she hears voices. Now she knows why Harry is so hesitant. Technically, they should be in class right now!

As the voices get closer, they sound more and more familiar. Hermione risks a peek from behind the statue and sees Malfoy and his two friends, Crabbe and Goyle.

". . . sure we should be here?" Goyle asks nervously.

"It's Potions. Professor Snape won't get us in trouble for missing one class." Malfoy smirks. "Besides, maybe he'll think our absence is due to a sudden fit of petrification." He finishes the statement with a laugh.

Crabbe actually stops walking. Hermione can practically smell his nervous sweat from behind the statue.

"T-that isn't funny Draco! What if it comes for us next?!" Crabbe asks, stuttering slightly even as the other two turn around and stare at him.

"Oh please." Malfoy snorts. "Have you two lunkheads forgotten? We're purebloods. Why would it come after us?"

"It did attack R-Ron Weasley," Goyle points out.

"Like he's a good example of a pureblood?" Malfoy laughs. "I wouldn't be surprised if he had a little mud in his veins. He's fond enough of muggles and mudbloods, he might as well be one."

Harry tenses beside her. Hermione empathizes considerably. She admires his self-control, well-knowing how much he'd love to go hex Malfoy into oblivion— but the blond boy isn't done yet.

"If I were the Heir of Slytherin, and I'm not saying I am, I'd go after the entire family! Disgusting mudblood loving—"

"Shut up!"

Hermione jumps at the sheer heat in Harry's tone. All three of the Slytherin boys whip around with surprise as Harry moves away from the statue, a dark look on his face.

"Speaking of mud," Malfoy says with a sneer. "What're you doing here, Potter? Stalking us, maybe?"

"Are you the Heir of Slytherin?" Harry asks.

Hermione's eyes widen in realization. Ron completely humiliated Malfoy in front of the whole school, and not long after, he ends up petrified. It's a terrifying picture to be sure, but frighteningly possible nonetheless.

"What?" Malfoy asks incredulously.

"I said, are you the Heir of Slytherin?"

"I don't see how that's any of your business, _mudblood."_ Malfoy smirks. "Not so brave now that your owner isn't here to protect you, are you, Potter?"

"Answer my question."

And it's unbelievable to Hermione that Malfoy can miss the undefinable power leaking off of Harry. It's giving her goosebumps. He's an incredibly impressive wizard, no matter his apparent lack of intellect. Hermione dearly hopes it won't come to blows.

Malfoy draws his wand. "Why don't you make me? We never did get to finish our duel."

Harry takes his own wand out slowly. "You asked for it."

" _Rictusempra!"_ Malfoy calls, but Harry is already out of the way. Hermione ducks to avoid the hit, leaving it to crash into the one-eyed witch statue and kick up dust.

" _Expelliarmus!"_ Harry is so much faster than Malfoy that it isn't funny. The wand goes flying out of Malfoy's hand and when he turns back to face Harry, The-Boy-Who-Lived has already pinned him against the wall, wand pointed at the blond's head.

"C-Crabbe, Goyle! Do something!"

"Cast something, I dare you," Harry says darkly to his two friends.

Both boys jump before scrambling away. "S-sorry Malfoy! We'll go get a professor!"

"Useless!" Malfoy calls. "You two are useless!" He turns back to Harry with a sigh, projecting an aloofness that Hermione's sure he isn't feeling. "Can't trust anyone, can you?"

"Are you the Heir of Slytherin?"

"Maybe, maybe not. I don't see why I should tell you. What're you going to do, hex me? The moment a professor comes I'm going to have you expelled from school. Professor Snape would be more than willing to—"

Harry's fist flies towards Malfoy frighteningly fast and then there's a loud crunching sound and a plume of dust. Hermione blinks and her mouth falls open, because Harry's fist is embedded at least six inches into the stone wall right next to the blond boy's head.

Malfoy is pale as a sheet. "W-what are you?" he stutters, all pretenses banished by fear.

"I'm Ace's little brother," Harry says intensely. "Now tell me—"

"H-Harry!"

All three of them turn to the entrance of the corridor, expecting a teacher or even the Headmaster. But all they find is the diminutive figure of Ginny Weasley.

"He isn't the heir," she says in a rush, gasping. And something about the desperate nature of her words makes Harry's grip on Malfoy slacken. The blond falls to the floor and scoots away from Harry before scrambling to his feet and running down the other end of the hallway.

"I know w-who it is," Ginny continues, trembling.

Harry slowly removes his hand from the stone wall, and both girls flinch as rubble and dust fall from the hole. Hermione blinks with surprise when Harry's hand emerges undamaged. She wants to ask. She _will_ ask. But not now.

Hermione finally steps away from the statue and she and Harry hurry down the corridor to Ginny.

"Who is it?" Harry asks intently.

"I-it's me!" Ginny confesses in a gush. And to say the two of them are shocked is an understatement.

"I didn't m-mean to! It wasn't o-on purpose! I found T-Tom's diary in my bag and I started writing in it, and he started telling me to _do_ _things._ I did at first, but when I said no I stopped remembering parts of my day, and people kept getting p-petrified, and I knew it was my fault! I tried to throw it away but-but then today Ron appeared and he had it and I don't remember what happened next, but when I came to my senses, I had the d-diary again and Ron was in the infirmary!" Tears are running down her face and now that Hermione looks down she sees the black diary in a death grip within Ginny's bone white fingers.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry Harry!" she sobs. "I didn't mean to, I—"

"Ginny," Harry says lowly. She immediately shuts up, tears still running down her face. "Do you know where the basilisk is?"

She nods shakily.

"Can you take me there?"

Another nod.

And then a gleam of light enters his eyes, the one that promises to make right things that have been wrong for so long. It's a look Hermione remembers he and Ron sharing right before they entered the fires to face You-Know-Who. The return of it is incredibly comforting.

Ginny's face is stunned, and Hermione can tell she's equally taken aback by the earnest promise in his eyes.

"I'll take care of it then. You don't have to worry."

Ginny bites her lip to keep back another sob, and nods a third, final time.

"Let's get going."

* * *

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 **You remember that time in the books where Ginny almost told the boys something was 'bothering her'? I do. Teehehehee. Well, too late now! Luffy's gonna flip a table, am I right? And Ace's views on people/life because of Teach/Bleackbeard are understandable, tho sad...**

 **Next week we get Luffy's second meeting with VLDY.**

 **Thanks for reading! Leave a review if you want to~**


	9. ll: What's in a name you can't spell?

**Tada! We're not done yet, even after this chapter.**

 **Thanks go to my beta breather. A wonderful, fabulous soul!~**

 **And thanks to my wonderful reviewers: Ender the multiverse Detective, LuckyKittens, RedHeadsRock1010, The Keeper of Worlds, Guest (11/15/16), Thisisarealtagwhy, Allykrau, FireD. Rion, Zaralann, Guest [2nd on] (11/15/16), Guest 2 (11/16/16), Freefan1412, Loyan Ali (11/16/16), Icewing5 (11/17/16), chiharuSAICHI, mylongodetosleep, Failing Wings, Guest (11/19/16), ErinSkyeLi2. 7, Matt {2 revs} (11/21 &22/16), and Guest (11/21/16)! I appreciate the kind words of encouragement!**

* * *

 _Chapter 9: What's in a Name if you can't Spell it?_

* * *

Hermione had made several hypotheses about where the Chamber of Secrets might be located. How could she not? She knew that the entrance is no doubt protected by a plethora of magic spells to guard its secrets, but she still had a few suspicions harbored in out-of-the-way rooms and corridors. None of her guesses included the first floor's girl's bathroom.

She'd question whether Ginny was actually being serious, but the solemn, tearful expression has yet to fade from her face. With Ron petrified, even Fred and George wouldn't make a joke about this. She wonders how they're handling things...

Myrtle greets them the moment they enter.

"Back again I see," she says in her high pitched tone. "And you've brought friends. Here to take apart my bathroom again?"

"That's Myrtle. She haunts the bathroom," Ginny says for Harry's benefit. "The Ch-chamber is hidden somewhere in this room."

Hermione blinks. "You don't know where?"

Ginny shakes her head jerkily. "He led me here the first time, but I— I blacked out. I don't remember how to get into the chamber."

"This is where you and Ron found the diary isn't it?" Hermione asks, earning her a nod from her dark haired friend. "Where was it exactly?"

Harry gestures to the stalls. "By the third one."

Hermione enters the stall, but doesn't find anything beyond the toilet. Her and Harry check the rest of the stalls, looking for— well, Hermione honestly has no idea what kind of clue will lead them to the Chamber. It's obviously hidden, but how can they find it...

Her dark-haired friend has a much more straight forward approach.

"Myrtle, have you seen anything? Have you seen what Ginny does when she gets here?" Harry looks towards the ghost girl.

Myrtle tilts her head before sniffing. "I don't see why I should tell you anything."

"Because you're nice," Harry replies, managing to not make it sound like a question

"Nice? I've never been called _nice._ It was always fat Myrtle, ugly Myrtle, pimply Myrtle!" She lets out a mournful sob.

"Why'd they call you that?" There is genuine confusion in the dark haired boy's tone. "You don't look that fat and pimply and whatever."

And maybe's it's a trick of the torch light, but Hermione would swear the ghost girl's cheeks darken in color at the clumsy half-compliment.

In a completely different voice than her normal high-pitched shriek, she says, "You are a charming one, aren't you?"

Is— is she twirling her hair?!

"What's your name?" she asks demurely. And now Hermione is 100% positive that she's eyeing Harry with an undoubtedly flirty look.

Predictably, Harry doesn't seem to notice. "I'm Harry Potter."

"I'm Myrtle."

"I know that."

She giggles, and Hermione rolls her eyes.

"Hey, can you show me where the Chamber is?" he persists.

"It's dangerous," Myrtle says, biting her lip. "The creature is scary. I hear it hissing sometimes."

"I know it's down there. That's why I'm going. It hurt my brother, so I'm going to beat it up." The sentence coming from anyone else would seem arrogant, but Harry is anything but.

"Brave too." Myrtle gives Harry a coy smile. "I suppose if you do die, you can always share my toilet with me."

"Well are you going to show us or aren't you?" Hermione cuts in impatiently.

Her words earn her a glare from Myrtle, but nonetheless, the ghost sniffs and points towards one of the basins.

"I'm much too afraid to mingle with the Heir of Slytherin." She shoots Ginny a dubious look. "But I have seen you standing in front of that sink over there before I hide."

Hermione and Harry immediately go over to the sink, examining it top to bottom.

"There's something here," Harry says, hand rubbing some grit off the faucet. "There's a snake on it."

"A snake? I guess it's a sign we're in the right place for sure." No other reason there would be a snake randomly imprinted on the faucet. The only question now is how they can get the entrance to open. She ponders the idea of a spell being the key. It would have to be incredibly rare, or else someone would maybe open it without realizing. At the same time, Hermione knows the spell would have to be relatively simple, because Ginny's magic as a first year is unmolded, untrained, and unfit for high level spells. She discards that idea, and ponders a secret switch, but that would be too easy.

"Come on, think Hermione," she chastises herself. "What have we learned about the Chamber of Secrets?"

"It's got a snake in it," Harry volunteers.

"It can p-petrify people," Ginny adds in.

"No, not about the creature, about the actual Chamber!"

"Wasn't it made by Salamander Slytherin?" Harry suggests.

Hermione runs everything she read about the founder in _Hogwarts: A History._ Realization hits her like a train on the track.

"I wonder— Harry, try speaking Parseltongue!"

He frowns, but after some trial and error, Harry manages to hiss something. Sure enough, the sinks begin sliding down into the tile one by one, revealing a platform of some kind. All three Gryffindors exchange looks, two nervous and one determined, before they each step onto the platform. The floor beneath them lurches and then slowly lowers, going deeper and deeper into the dark parts of the castle.

The three end up in a pitch-black area. Harry, always unafraid, steps off the platform immediately. Hermione hears the loud crunching and cracking of something.

" _Lumos,"_ she utters with a flick of her wand. As light fills the area around them, Hermione feels nausea build up. Because the ground outside of the platform is covered in bones of all shapes and sizes. Some look like animals, but Hermione is horrified to realize that there is a fair sprinkling of human skulls in the remains. Harry shifts, breaking more of the brittle bones beneath his feet. For the first time, the _danger_ of their situation really sinks in. There is a very good chance that Hermione is going to die here, she realizes.

" _Lumos,"_ Harry casts, spreading the cavern with more light, as well as igniting his expression. The self-assured, determined look hasn't faded from his eyes. While it's assuring that his courage doesn't falter even in one of the darker corners of the world, he's standing on other people's remains. It's— he doesn't even seemed fazed. Of course, if he were like Hermione, he'd still be on the platform, arrested by the image and the disturbing implications. Maybe Harry knows that it has to be done (and it does), which is why nothing like bones on the floor can stop him.

"Come on," he urges, extending his free hand towards her. She takes it, gratefully using his warmth as a distraction from the cold darkness surrounding them. Wincing as she gets off the platform and steps onto the bones, stumbling a bit as they roll and grind beneath her feet, Hermione examines the dark stones that line the walls of the Chamber and the single hallway leading out. Only one path available to them. Ginny dismounts shakily and quickly weaves her arm around Harry's wand arm, still gripping the diary tightly in her hands.

Together, the trio walk through the chamber, heralded by the echoes of the crunching bones beneath their feet. The hall gradually lightens the further they proceed, as dimly flickering torches begin appearing along the walls. By the time they reach the end, all of them are wincing from the pale white light filling the open space before them. Hermione gawks at their surroundings.

Black stone pillars line the chamber, stone snakes curving around them, all leading up to an intimidating carving of an old man's face in the rock. The rock has an eerie greenish tint that makes Hermione shudder and want to look away. But it's the only thing ahead of them and thus, their only destination. Harry knows this, of course he does, and he doesn't stop or hitch in his step as he moves forward.

Despite the incredible danger she's in, questions race through Hermione's mind— how was the Chamber made? What enchantments hide its presence from the school to such an extent that even Dumbledore doesn't know where it is? But a more pressing, immediate question takes priority in her mind— where is the basilisk?

By the time they reach the edge of the platform, Ginny is absolutely shaking. With everything that's happened to her, it probably shouldn't surprise Hermione that the redhead finally collapses. Her hand grasping desperately for purchase, she grabs Harry wand as she collapses. Harry catches her arm and readjusts his grip to keep her from hitting the floor. He lowers her down gently. Her eyes are closed and she is disconcertingly still, the diary just a little away from when it slipped from her hands.

"Ginny?" He kneels beside the unconscious girl and shakes her shoulders. Not a stir or even a flicker. The brown haired witch quickly checks the other girl's wrist. Still a pulse, thankfully.

Hermione then finds herself on the receiving end of a pleading look from Harry. It says _do something._

And Hermione does. " _Rennervate!"_

She expects Ginny to gasp, arch off the ground, her eyes to snap open, and her limp hands to clench— she receives no such reaction.

" _Rennervate! Rennervate! Rennervate!"_ Hermione casts again and again to no effect. She raises her wand again, ready to put all her magic reserves into her next casting, but is stopped by a smooth voice.

"She won't wake."

Hermione and Harry whip around and see a sepia toned boy a few years older than them standing on the other side of Ginny. The boy is relatively unremarkable, with a mildly attractive face and dark hair. He's wearing the school robes, leading Hermione to wonder just who—

"Tom Riddle?" Harry utters beside her in surprise. She blinks. Apparently this is the same Tom Riddle Harry and Ron met in the enchanted diary only this morning. Is it really still the same day? In less than twelve hours, there's been Harry and Ron's revelation with the diary, Ron's petrification, Harry's resolute questioning of Malfoy, and _this_. Whatever this is. She doesn't know what awaits her, nor what Tom's sudden appearance means, but Hermione suspects that her eventful day is far from over.

"It's nice to finally meet you in person, Harry." The tone in the boy's voice— Tom's voice— is too... fond and familiar to keep her at ease. He's not real either, to Hermione's understanding; at least, he shouldn't be. His sudden manifestation is suspicious at best.

"We need to get Ginny out of here, Harry. It's not safe, she's defenseless!"

"Let me see." Tom kneels beside the red haired girl, reaching for her wrist. Hermione assumes to check her pulse, but she is very wrong as he pulls Harry's wand from her limp fingers.

"What are you doing, Tom?" Harry asks. Hermione wonders too, but there are much more pressing things. Wands are replaceable, but people are not. Tom's repossession of Harry's wand only makes returning to the castle even more important. She doesn't trust him.

"Harry, we need to get Ginny out of here, now!" Hermione hisses. "We don't know when the basilisk is coming."

She lifts her wand and gives a swish and flick. " _Wingardium Levio—"_

 _"Expelliarmus!"_

Her wand flies out of her hand and into the sewage water. Panic begins setting in as the reality of the situation comes to her.

"Don't worry about the basilisk. It won't come until it's called," Tom comments mildly, lowering his confiscated wand.

"It's you... you're the Heir of Slytherin!" Hermione exclaims.

"You're quite bright, for a mudblood." Tom spins Harry's wand idly in his hands. "I am the Heir of Slytherin, but I couldn't have done it without dear Ginny's help."

"What do you mean?" Hermione asks warily.

"Poor, lonely Ginny Weasley... She received my diary and found a friend in me. Her _only_ friend. She started writing in me, poured out all of her pathetic, dull secrets, giving me strength. I responded in kind, putting a bit of me into her. Of course all of her petty troubles were mind-numbingly boring, but then she told me about you and I just had to meet you. So I let her throw the diary away and had my pet lead you to me. After that—"

Harry's quick downward punch to Tom's face makes the older boy stop talking. Of course, Tom isn't tangible, so his fist goes straight through. The surprise of the action is really what stuns the older boy into silence.

"Harry!" Hermione snaps. "He was just about to explain everything!"

"He's the bad guy," Harry points out. "Why should I listen to what he's got to say?"

"Because it might contain something important, a weakness or something!" Hermione says, almost hysterical. "I want to know why he's here at least. Please continue, Tom," she urges. "Just ignore Harry."

From the livid look on his face, Hermione can tell he isn't particularly inclined to listen to her wishes.

"That's enough. I've waited and bided my time all for this moment, and you've ruined it! You're going to die, ignorant of why." He takes a sharp breath and exhales before continuing with a dark grin. "I suppose all you really need to know is that it was done by Lord Voldemort's hand!"

Shock jolts down Hermione's spine as she realizes that she, Hermione Granger, dentist's daughter, is standing before a younger iteration of You-Know-Who, the most frightening wizard of all time. She doesn't have time to be paralyzed with fear though, because Riddle begins hissing. The mouth of the stone face slowly opens, and at the first sign of movement she quickly closes her eyes.

"Shut your eyes, Harry!" she commands. Reaching out beside her, she manages to find his robes and weaves her arm around his. "If you open them, the basilisk will kill you!"

"Alright," Harry says. "But how are we supposed to fight it?"

"You don't," Tom— He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named— replies.

Hermione's mind races frantically, searching for some kind of answer, but she draws an absolute blank. It's really the end for her, isn't it? Hopelessness builds as horrible images flash through her mind. She sees herself in a ghostly guise haunting the castle like Myrtle, never graduating, never becoming a remarkable witch, never seeing her friends again— it's too horrifying to bear. She wants to cry, to give in, and it's only Harry's soft assurance that keeps the tears from falling.

"We'll be okay, Hermione," he utters quietly. "We're not alone."

As though responding to Harry's assurances, the calls of a bird sound though the Chamber. The sharp notes bounce off the walls as it gets closer and closer, making Hermione's head ring.

"No, what are you doing?!" You-Know-Who calls. "Kill the bird!"

Hermione hears the loud hisses of the snake and the hasty flapping and shrieks of the bird. After a few nerve-wracking moments of not _knowing_ anything, the basilisk lets out a sharp cry.

"Hermione! Look, it's Fawkes, Dumbledore's phoenix!" Harry says excitedly beside her.

"Harry! Shut your eyes, the basilisk—"

"Fawkes blinded him! It's safe now."

Slowly, tentatively, she opens her eyes and looks upward, towards the snake. Instead of the yellow eyes she feared, she finds gouged sockets. Hermione resists the urge to vomit and takes solace in the fact that at least they don't have to worry about instant death. They aren't completely out of the woods quite yet, considering the meter long teeth that have descended from the basilisk's mouth as it snips at the phoenix.

"Ignore the bird!" He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named orders. "Kill the boy! Sniff him out!"

Fawkes dodges one last swipe from the snake and flies back the way it came, seeming to have done its job. Before it goes though, it drops a rolled bit of cloth on them. Harry catches it and unfolds it quickly. They discover—

"The sorting hat?!" Hermione stares at the gift incredulously.

"Cool." Harry smiles and places the sorting hat on Hermione's head. With one last confident look, he pushes her out of the way and dodges a sudden strike from the snake that she never even saw coming. When Hermione sits up and shakes the daze from her mind, she sees Harry disappearing into one of the side tunnels in the chamber, the basilisk right behind him.

Standing, Hermione reassess the situation. She's alone with Ginny, You-Know-Who, and the diary. Her eyes narrow. If Harry is distracting the basilisk, the least she can do is try and protect Ginny. If only she knew how to do that... Hermione is sure that the redhead's sudden weakness is due to the ghostly boy's actions somehow, but she can't puzzle out what kind of spell he used— but then Ginny collapsed before he stole Harry's wand anyways, so how is he doing it?! While Hermione's staring at him piercingly, she realizes something– she is less able to see through him than when he first appeared.

"You're manifesting more," she utters aloud, pieces falling into place. "You're growing stronger!"

"Yes, very clever," Tom drawls. "As Ginny grows weaker, I grow stronger. Soon my memory will no longer be tied to the diary, and Ginny will be _dead_."

He doesn't stop there, he continues talking about all the muggles and mudbloods he intends to kill, how he'll reap his revenge on Dumbledore— but Hermione isn't paying attention. Because she knows now what she needs to do. If his memory is tied to the diary, then she needs to destroy that diary. But how? Her wand is somewhere in the murky sewer water, and Tom still has Harry's. She seriously doubts he'll let her get close enough to snatch it. Ginny's is still in her pocket, but despite being dead for over fifty years, Tom's reflexes are still exceptionally sharp— he'd spell the wand from her hand the minute she drew it.

' _I need a weapon,'_ she thinks to the sorting hat, pleading for help. Hermione receives no reply.

What she does receive, is a knock on the head.

"Ow!" she exclaims, stars dancing in front of her eyes. She rips off the hat and a long, gleaming sword slips out of the folds of fabric before clattering loudly on the ground. Vaguely, a sketch in _Hogwarts; a History_ comes to mind and she realizes it's the sword of Godric Gryffindor. For a moment, all she can do is stare dumbly at the artifact. As if today wasn't weird enough already, she finds herself in possession of an ancient sacred artifact, held by one of the greatest wizards in the world—

Shaking herself, Hermione quickly leans down and swipes the sword from the ground. Its large hilt has a ruby the size of an egg embedded in the silver and the whole thing feels awkward in her small hands. She raises it anyways and steps forward.

Tom snorts. "Are you going to try and fight me with that sword? You're welcome to try." He smirks and holds his arms out mockingly to make a larger target for her.

Hermione ignores him, instead she dashes towards Ginny. Kicking the diary further away, Hermione raises the sword and swings it with all the force she can muster onto the black cover.

Tom screams as he realizes what's happening, raises the wand, but it's too late— gaping holes have begun to tear through his visage and Harry's wand falls from his disintegrating grasp. Hermione doesn't pay attention to this though— she swings again and again at the diary, cutting it to pieces. The vibrations from striking the stone ground run up her arms, making them tingle and ache fiercely, but she keeps ahold of the sword until the diary is nothing but scraps at her feet.

Panting, Hermione forces herself to hang on to the sword, and faces what's left of the memory of Tom Riddle. More and more of his strength drifts from his being in light particles. The parts of his face yet to vanish are twisted into a hateful, malevolent glare.

"You disgusting, filthy little _mudblood!"_ he shouts. "You think you're so incredibly clever. Well we'll just see about that. It wouldn't be fitting if the Chamber of Secrets opened and a mudblood didn't die!"

He lets out a loud raspy hiss before his voice cuts out like a bad connection on a phone. His being dissolves in the air, leaving no hint it existed in the first place. Hermione lowers the tip of the sword to the ground.

She did it. She killed You-Know-Who. Shock battles with relief and happiness. All of it is shrouded by his last words though. What did he mean by—

Her shoulders tense and she slowly turns around to face the hisses that are drawing nearer and nearer to her. Sure enough, the basilisk is exiting the corridor and heading towards her with frightening speed. Hermione lifts the sword in her tense, trembling hands, and faces the basilisk head on. But as it nears, her courage falters and the artifact slips from her fingers. She can't help but close her eyes and hope desperately for someone to save her.

* * *

"Here, Snakey, Snakey," Luffy calls down the corridors, though he really doesn't need to. The basilisk has been hot on his trail for the past five minutes as he carelessly splashes through the sewer water. Realizing that he's already used the name 'Snakey', Luffy frowns and considers other options. Bassy rolls off the tongue rather nicely, but it rhymes with Bessie, which is a cow name, and a faint recollection from elementary school and their study of famous catastrophes reminds him that a cow started the Great Chicago fire. And snakes don't like fire, so that isn't any good. Slinky comes to mind, but there aren't stairs nearby, so what use is a slinky?

After leading the basilisk well away from Hermione and Ginny, Luffy eagerly whips around. "Silky!" he exclaims, trying the name out. The basilisk looks pretty damn smooth and shiny. So that makes sense, right?

He receives a hiss for his trouble. But that's okay, because Silky's just listening to Tom. Or is it Voldermart? He had the same trouble last time. Because was it Quirrell or Voldimert he beat up? Honestly it's incredibly confusing to him, and he wishes that Voldymort would just pick a name and stick with it. Hopefully it would be something easier to remember than Vodlermort.

Silky shoots forward and tries to sink his fangs into Luffy's midsection, but he's too fast, and ducks out of the way. He's glad that he and Silky are away from Hermione, because he's about to release all his frustrations on the basilisk. He knows Silky's just an animal, and that Tom is to blame for the petrification of Ace, but since Tom's currently impossible to hit, he'll have to make do with Silky. Luffy frowns momentarily as he's suddenly reminded of Smokey and Crocodile and how impossible hitting those bastards was. This is an unpleasantly familiar instance. But if he can manifest some Armament Haki and get close enough, maybe— Luffy quickly dodges a swipe of Silky's long whip-like tail.

Luffy responds with a quick gum-gum pistol to the face. His rubbery punch soars through the air— and bounces harmlessly off of Silky's thick scales. Suddenly the snake's silky smooth scales are a lot less charming. Luffy's eyes widen unhappily as he realizes that Silky's hide is too thick to breach with the blunt force of his punches alone. If he was stronger—

Taking a deep breath, Luffy tries to summon Armament to his fist like Ace taught him. He gets a few splotches of dark covering, but it isn't enough. That doesn't stop him from trying. Pulling back, Luffy sends his gray-splattered fist flying. Like the first time it bounces back, with only a slight clinking to show there was any difference at all.

Gritting his teeth, Luffy winds up his fist and fires again, and again, and again, and again.

"Gum-gum gatling!"

Punch after punch head towards the snake. Silky, while initially stunned by the rapid smattering of attacks, starts thrashing its head wildly through the air, and with a quick snap catches Luffy's forearm in its teeth. A cut off gasp escapes Luffy's throat as he falls to the ground, extended arm still caught on Silky's fang. The basilisk relinquishes its grip, and Luffy's arm retracts to its normal length, but a few seconds slower than usual. Luffy sort of wonders why that is, but it's hard to concentrate all of a sudden. Distantly he recalls a lecture he received from both Usopp and Nami when they passed the Red Line about venomous snakes. And yes, he knows this feeling.

The sensation is a familiar one. He recalls Magellan and his Venom-Venom fruit; it's a memory that is still too close for him to breathe calmly, and yet at the moment seems leagues away. His concentration was the first to go last time too, he remembers.

Silky leans down to him slowly, seeming to stare at him with its eyeless sockets. The name doesn't fit the basilisk anymore. Because all Luffy wants to do is rip those smooth scales off the snake's body. And then eat the basilisk. He is awfully hungry... After a descaling, he doesn't think Silky will be very silky at all. So he needs to think of a new name, and fast, because it looks like the basilisk is going to eat him. Oh, and the venom is persistently shutting down his faculties.

His rambling thoughts are cut off by a loud scratchy hiss.

" _Kill the mudblood girl! Now! Kill her now! K-ll -er –n—"_

The voice suddenly cuts out. Luffy's still trying to puzzle out what the voice meant when the basilisk starts moving away from him. And he has the horrible realization of what's happening.

The snake is going after Hermione!

Luffy forces himself to his feet despite that his arms and legs feel like lead. With deep, heaving gasps, he stumbles into a run, splashing clumsily through the sewer. Twice he almost trips on absolutely nothing, but he keeps his goal in mind. If he doesn't defeat the basilisk he won't be able to reach Ace on the Marine's ship!

Wait, something about that isn't right. He's— Harry. Yeah, he's Harry. And he's here to save Hermione. Luffy glances to the side to where a vague image of Mr. 3 is floating. Hopefully the wax wall will be done in time to face Magellan, because Luffy doesn't think Hermione will hold up well against the warden. After what seems like an hour, Luffy escapes the network of pipes and finds himself on the long strip of stone that leads to the old man's face carved into the wall. He won't leave them to fight off the enemy like what happened with Bon-chan and the wolves in a place Luffy can't quite remember.

The snake is faster than Luffy is though, and it's already reached his two friends. Extending its jaws wide, Magellan darts forward and swallows Hermione whole.

Ice fills Luffy's veins. He couldn't save Bon-chan last time either. He barely beat Magellan, and he doesn't think Mr. 3 can help him. He isn't any stronger than before. He hasn't grown at all. He's wea—

 _"Luffy,"_ Ace says, and he's surrounded by the trees in the Forbidden Forest. " _Haki is one of the most important tools. You can beat anyone with it. The most important thing to summoning any kind of Haki is to think about what you're trying to protect... are you paying attention? Alright, we'll pick this up after lunch._ "

Luffy shakes the images from his mind, regretting the action as the room spins. Narrowing his resolve, Luffy pulls back his fist, sending it shooting meters back as Hermione and Bon-chan fill his mind. His vision is swirling with spots but he finds the strength he needs gathering on the tips of his fingers, crawling up his arm.

"Gum-gum." His arm has extended as far back as it can go. "Bullet!"

A gray fist hurtles towards the creature, smashing into the side of its face, sending blood and what looks like a fang flying to the floor. Magellan lets out a mournful hiss of pain before collapsing. The snake writhes on the stone, pained. But Luffy doesn't feel compassion, no, not while Hermione's still in its mouth. After a hobbling run, Luffy finally reaches the creature. The snake's head, beaten and bloody and desperate, darts forward, hoping to catch Luffy again.

But Luffy's had enough.

" **Stop it."** And a pulse of _something_ ripples through his body. Magellan stills very suddenly. Luffy approaches it slowly, unable to muster speed by this point. The basilisk tries to scramble back, but Luffy lets out a short hiss.

"Be still," he snaps. The snake listens.

"W-what do you wish of me, Master?" the basilisk asks, voice wavering.

"Open your mouth," Luffy commands. The serpent slowly obeys. His vision is starting to fade entirely, but Luffy can't let his body shut down until everything's taken care of.

"If you close your mouth on me, I'll kill you," Luffy slurs before he leans into the basilisks throat. The snake, to its credit, stiffens, but remains like a statue. Luffy sends his hand forward, deep into the creature's mouth. His fit of adrenaline has faded, so his arm extends slowly, sluggishly. But he reaches and reaches until he meets with what feels like a shoe. He grips an ankle and pulls back. Inch by inch, Hermione is heaved from the creature's stomach. When she reaches the opening of its maw, Luffy leans forward and carefully pulls her out, mindful of the single fang the basilisk still has left.

After laying Hermione down gently, Luffy awkwardly places his hand by her mouth, knocking her in the nose once or twice before he gets there. He can't feel air against his palm, but his hand is mostly numb anyways. He figures CPR is a good idea just in case. Like any pirate worth his salt, Luffy can perform CPR with his eyes closed. As it is, that might as well be what he's doing, especially with his fading consciousness. A few quick pumps and then he clumsily presses his lips to hers and breathes into her mouth. He presses her chest again, vision almost completely gone by this point, but the small bit he sees is enough.

After three cycles, Hermione starts coughing and Luffy sighs in relief. Hermione doesn't open her eyes, but her chest is moving. It's enough for him to finally allow himself to collapse on the ground. He stares up dazedly, not seeing very much at all. Through the pinhole of sight, he can tell the basilisk is hovering over his head menacingly. When it opens its mouth and Luffy sees the missing teeth, the dark haired boy lets out a single chuckle.

He knows the snake's name.

"Sabo 2." Luffy's ready now. Ace will be alright. He has so many siblings. And he knows Marco will be there to keep him out of trouble—

Before Sabo 2 can bite his head off, a stray bit of red light slams into his side.

" _Flipendo!"_

Luffy tilts his head and sees a redheaded girl running his way.

"Nami." He grins.

Her brown eyes are wide, shocked, but he sees that spark in them.

"You always get into so much trouble, Captain." Her voice wavers, and water runs down her face.

Luffy exhales, and suddenly his lungs are too heavy to move again. He's dimly okay with it all. It's nice to see Nami before he dies. He didn't think he'd see her again.

"You have freckles," he utters, grinning faintly as the blackness overtakes him.

* * *

 _Her life is filled with tangerines and yellow sundresses. Nojiko calls her from their house on the edge of the orchard. Her sister's blue hair hits the wind. She's always been jealous of the color, it looks so pretty in the sunlight—_

 _"Nami." Warm, familiar, motherly. Bellemere running her hands through Nami's hair the way she and Nojiko run through the tangerine trees—_

 _Suddenly the scene shifts, and a man, if that's what he is, stands before her. He bares his teeth and her world suddenly shifts and changes until it's unrecognizable to her. When she looks down, Bellemere's blood is on Nami's hands, and with those hands she strikes a deal with the blue devil. It's hard work, and as the years pass, she can't seem to smell or taste the tangerines anymore—_

 _She lives on the sea for years, alone, growing into her curves, which become her weapon of choice against the likes of foolish men. She uses them to their full extent as she gathers paper bills. The paper doesn't mean anything to her— not really. She can't spend it on herself, after all. But Nami sometimes likes to imagine that each thousand beri is a brick of her hometown, another life spared of Arlong's cruelty. She'll have the whole set one day, and then he'll leave, because he promised a ten-year-old girl he would—_

 _She plans and scrimps and saves for eight years. Alone, on a boat, with nothing but paper and jewels for company. Until a boy with a straw hat falls from the sky—_

 _"Join my crew!" he says, teeth flashing. Nami wants to hit him, because she just said how she hates pirates. She'll never become one. But she sees an opportunity, and so she manipulates him to her will. However, she soon learns that the boy —Luffy— isn't one to be controlled or tempered. And she envies and loves him for that—_

 _She stays with Luffy and the swordsman for a time. Learning, slowly, how to laugh with them. A sharpshooter joins and he just builds upon the cavalcade of ridiculousness that is her crew—_

 _Not that Nami can afford to think of them as 'her' crew. When they go to gather a chef, Nami knows her time is up. She steals their ship and puts leagues of ocean between her and the boy with the straw hat. But he follows her. She raves against him, shouting at him to leave, go away, you don't understand, just leave me alone! But he remains, and when her soul finally breaks under the pressure of her town and loved ones, she asks him,_ _ **please help,**_ _and he places his hat on her head—_

 _Arlong is dead. And the boy with the straw hat shouts, "Join my crew!" And she does. Nami doesn't know how she could possibly do anything else—_

 _She plants tangerine trees on the Going Merry and on her first night back on their ship, she takes one from the sweet smelling trees. And Nami can taste them again—_

 _Months pass, but it feels like years, as Luffy pulls her through fairy tales and scientific anomalies and civil wars and shadowed lands. Arlong seems like a distant memory. And she hits Luffy and yells at him and can't find a way to tell him that she loves him for being him, and for not loving her for any other reason than because she is his precious nakama. He's the first man to ever do so—_

 _They're separated. Up so high in the clouds, Nami's mind is captured by the weather machines and static electricity and the wise old men who have so much to teach her, and she forgets the land below, just for a few days. She never fathomed that tragedy of the sharpest kind awaited her in the black ink of the newspaper—_

 _Luffy died. He's dead. He is no longer here. She breaks down, claws at her skin, curses the wise old men who have so much to teach her. She goes to his grave and wants to yell at him, but the thought of him not complaining and whining back is too painful, so she says nothing instead—_

 _They're all hurt, and broken, and lost, and alone. But they're all hurt, and broken, and lost, and alone together. And they patch something together, a quilt from the scraps of fabric and straw he left behind. They spend some time apart to mourn and grow stronger before setting out into the world to find his dream. It's how they hold on to him—_

 _Nami is much older now. Her eyes have the beginnings of lines and she moves less quickly these days. Her life has been quite long for a pirate. But the years are nothing compared to the months she spent with her captain, the boy with the straw hat. It takes decades, but now she sees Luffy's death a little clearer—_

 _He was always the Peter Pan of their world, their dreams, and she supposes he simply wasn't meant to grow up—_

 _And so, eternally seventeen, he lives on in their minds and most especially their hearts—_

 _Until the day she dies—_

Nami sucks in a harsh breath as she's shocked into consciousness. Her world is shifted sideways and she can't fully grasp everything that's happening. But as she looks around and sees the menacing image of the basilisk hovering before the dark haired boy, her hand shoots to the pocket of her robes.

" _Flipendo!"_

The beam of light hits the snake, sending it into the water where it quickly slinks away. She rushes over to Harry's side and looks into his glassy eyes.

"Nami," he utters. And she absolutely blanches. He's Luffy— he's here, back, reincarnated, whatever the case may be, he's alive and before her. She— can't believe it's really him! He's Harry Potter? Recollections of his strange hyper behavior fills her mind and it clicks into place. Of course it's him, she thinks. Who else could it be?

That's when she notices the large hole in his arm and his uncharacteristic stillness.

"You always get into so much trouble, Captain," she says for the first time in years, water slipping down her face. The moment would be perfect, were he not dying again. This time before her eyes, right when she gets him back—

"You have freckles." Luffy smiles, not as wide as normally, but still so genuine. His now-green eyes shut and dread consumes her.

"Help me!" she cries, voice raw with desperation. "Somebody! Please!"

The screech of a bird answers her, and she watches with numb amazement as the majestic red creature lands before them. His intelligent black eyes look over all three of them, before landing on Harry. Water gathers in the bird's eyes, and Nami never knew that birds could cry before. The tears drop one by one onto Luffy's wound.

Incredibly, miraculously, the wound closes right before her eyes.

"Thank you," she gasps. One trembling hand strokes the bird's feathers while the other wipes the wetness away from her cheeks.

Luffy stirs minutely. Nami's not incredibly surprised. It takes more than poison to keep her captain down.

One green eye opens and looks blearily around the room.

"Fawkes." He holds one hand out to the bird who leans its head forward into the touch. "Thank you."

Nami smiles at the sweet scene.

"I'm sorry I said I'd eat you earlier. I didn't mean it. I promise to never say that again," Luffy assures him.

"You idiot!" she shouts.

"What?" he asks as he slowly sits up.

"You can't eat a bird like this! He's special. Even I can tell he's magical!"

"I know that. Maybe magic would make him taste better."

"Luffy!"

"You're so mean, Nami," he complains, pouting. He blinks in slight surprise as Nami throws herself at him. Despite his weariness he weakly wraps an arm around her and lets Nami clutch at his robes and touch his hair and face as much as she wants. After a long few minutes, she reluctantly pulls back.

"We should probably get out of here before the basilisk comes back," she says.

"Mm, I don't think Sabo 2 will try anything," Luffy says easily as he shakily gets to his feet.

"... You named the basilisk."

"Uh-huh!"

"Sabo 2?"

"Yep!"

"Why?" Nami asks.

"He's missing a tooth," Luffy says, as though it's in any way a sufficient explanation.

Nami sighs. He's just like she remembers him. Her brown eyes fall on the unconscious Hermione.

"How do we get her out?" Nami asks.

Luffy looks around before getting his wand. Standing before Hermione, he gives a few flicks and says,

" _Rennervate!"_

Hermione jerks to life, gasping suddenly, hands clenching and back arching against the stone.

"Magic is so cool!" Luffy says, grinning to Nami. Although she doesn't say anything, she completely and wholly agrees.

"H-Harry! The basilisk it— I—" Hermione manages through her panting as she hurriedly scrambles to her feet. Once she sees the area's clear, her eyes focus on Luffy. "How did you get me from the basilisk?! It swallowed me whole!"

"I told Sabo 2 to hold still while I pulled you out," Luffy explains, and Nami just barely resists face-palming.

"Sabo 2?" Hermione's brow furrows. After a long moment she asks, "Did you name the basilisk?!"

Luffy opens his mouth, but Nami cuts him off.

"Let's get out of here. If we let him go on he'll keel over with exhaustion."

"Ginny!" Hermione says, exhaling with relief. "You're okay."

"I'm fine. A little bruised, but I've been worse." Nami shrugs before turning concerned eyes on the other girl. "I didn't know you were swallowed by the snake!"

"I— it was very sudden," Hermione says, still clearly stunned by it all. "Thank you for saving me, Harry."

Despite the poisoning and whatever else Luffy's been through, he gives Hermione the bright I-saved-you-and-now-everything's-great smile.

"What happened to Tom?" Nami asks, feeling very unsettled by what she remembers. Looking back at it with the years of experience she now has under her belt, the manipulation is clear to her. She _hates_ it. Manipulation reminds her of Arlong, and the only kind of manipulation she'll accept is the manipulation Luffy attempts when he wants some of her food— the realization that the example applies again is absolutely stunning to her, and her breath catches.

"The sorting hat granted me the sword of Godric Gryffindor! After I figured out that You-Know-Who was a younger iteration— a memory of his past self," Hermione clarifies for Luffy. "I used the sword to destroy the book. Then You-Know-Who disappeared." Seeing the sword on the ground, the brown haired girl picks it up and stares reverently at the gleaming edges.

Nami snorts. "I would've liked a turn with the sword at him. Oh well, let's get the hell out of here, this place smells awful," she says, earning her a slightly wide-eyed look from Hermione. She supposes it makes sense. Before this, Ginny was a nervous, unconfident eleven-year-old. Nami has lived a long time, and has generally been blunt. It's strange, because she is the same person, but at the same time she isn't. She remembers both lifetimes so well, and exists as some kind of collaboration. She wonders if it's the same for Luffy, or if he's always been _Luffy._ It's hard to imagine him otherwise.

"Shall we?" Nami urges. After fishing Hermione's wand from the water, the three stumble out of the Chamber of Secrets, tired, hungry, and ready to collapse. And though she's rarely done so in the past, Nami grabs Luffy's hand and laces their digits. Because for the first time in decades, she _can._

"I wonder if they have those potions ready for Ace," Luffy wonders aloud as he idly swings their hands.

Nami's eyes widen. "Ace?! You mean— _Ace?!"_

"That's what I said."

That means Ron, her brother, is actually Ace, as in _the_ Ace, Luffy's brother Ace. A lot of Ron's recent actions make much more sense now that she considers it. Damn. She never realized that her brother was that different! But then again, Ron did change _drastically_ when he came back from school last summer. She assumed it was to do with his first year of Hogwarts, but maybe that was when—

"You and I are going to have a talk later," she says, mindful of Hermione's curious look.

"Okay!" he says easily, smiling again. And Nami—

Nami feels like... her life has truly just begun.

* * *

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 **I hope this answers some of the questions y'all had about whether there will be other strawhats. The answer is yes. As for who and when, that'll have to wait :D.**

 **Luffy's interaction with Voldemort was pretty fun to write, as was his inability to know the right name. Lots of references to the escape from Impel Down, I'm sure you noticed.**

 **Ace is tetchy, I hope it's made clear why. Hopefully, over the years he'll smoothe out...**

 **Also, as a reviewer pointed out, Ace did look in the Basilisk's eyes, but his DF power prevented him from dying.**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **I always appreciate reviews~**

 **More next week!**


	10. ll: Awkward Hellos, Reluctant Goodbyes

**Hi everyone!**

 **Many thanks to my fantastic beta breather, too amazing for words!**

 **And thanks to all the reviewers, I've been so surprised by the positive response this story has gotten!**

 **Thanks go out to: Ender the multiverse Detective, LuckyKittens, The Keeper of Worlds, RedHeadsRock1010, LoganAlexander, Zaralann, Allykrau, Guest [first] (9/22/16), FireD. Rion, Guest [second] (9/22/16), Matt (9/23/16), Angel Winx, Guest 2 (9/23/16), Kitsune Foxfire, Spyrkle10, Chess-Shakki, NinjaFoodLover, Jo Anna Grace, Speed Reader, and Biowind!**

 **Also, the second guest on 9/22/16 realized a flaw with last chapter that I struggled with a few months ago when I wrote this. I hope my conclusion is satisfactory~**

 **VERY important note at the end!**

* * *

 _Chapter 10: Awkward Hellos, Reluctant Goodbyes_

* * *

After backtracking through the hallway and the field of bones, the trio make it back to the platform, which thankfully levitates back up to the bathroom. As they step onto the tile floor, the sinks rise behind them, covering the entrance again. They stand for a moment in the alarmingly normal girl's bathroom. The world still looks like the way they left it, like nothing of import happened, like say, besting a mythical creature and He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, or a sudden revelation of a past life. But since it's Luffy, Nami knows better than to expect anything less than that for one of his adventures. As usual, she survives whatever abnormal encounter Luffy's strange gravity draws to him, but also as usual, she's exhausted. Nami, despite having not done much in the Chamber, is ready to lie down for a good, long time. She realizes that with all the stress recently, she hasn't slept or eaten much. It's a wonder she hasn't passed out again to be honest.

Despite Luffy's whining about going to the infirmary first to visit Ace, Hermione is insistent that they find Dumbledore. Had Hermione seen Luffy's state previously, his arm gouged and bleeding freely, and seriously suffering from the effects of very deadly _poison,_ she probably would feel differently. As it is, Hermione likely assumes it's mostly the basilisk's blood that covers his body. Nami doesn't much feel like explaining since he's fine now, so she lets herself and Luffy be dragged down the hallway towards Dumbledore's office—

Well, they walk through the corridors for a little while. Then Hermione realizes she doesn't know the location of the headmaster's office, and Luffy, typically, doesn't remember either. So Luffy suggests the next best thing, and they drag an unwilling Hermione to the closest classroom, which just so happens to be McGonagall's. This isn't the best idea, but lacking Dumbledore, it's all they can do to soothe the older girl's anxieties. Nami already senses that this is going to be a mess. Despite the hell they've just been through, Hermione still knocks on the door.

"Um, Professor? May we come in? It's, uh, rather important."

"Come in," McGonagall says.

And in the worst possible scenario, she's in the middle of a lesson, with what looks like fourth years. In fact, Nami sees Fred and George are surprisingly in attendance. The minute the trio enter the room, all the sound stops and they're on the receiving end of forty-odd stares. Considering how Luffy and Hermione look, covered with blood and snake fluids respectively, with the latter holding a very large, sharp sword in her hands, it's understandable why. Fred and George leap to their feet, sending their chairs screaming back against the stone— then pandemonium breaks loose. Murmurs, exclamations, and questions fill the room. McGonagall herself looks quite pale in the face.

"Good heavens! What happened?!" McGonagall asks. "Where did you get that sword?! And the blood—"

"Well, we went down to the Chamber of Secrets, and—" Luffy starts. Nami slaps her hand over her friend's face but it's too late. Damage done. Shouts of surprise make it impossible for them to get a word in edgewise.

"Silence!" the professor commands sternly, and the group of fourth years descend into a hush, waiting for them to say something else.

"Class is dismissed!" McGonagall says sharply before shepherding the three out the door and into the hallway. Fred and George snap into action, following behind without even collecting their books or bags.

"Ginny!" Fred exclaims as they approach their group.

"Are you alright?!" George demands. Nami doesn't think she's seen either of them so concerned and it's a little touching, misplaced as it is; Nami can take care of herself... Well, she supposes they don't really know that yet.

Nami shrugs. "I passed out. Nothing happened to me. L— _Harry's_ the one who was bitten and poisoned by the basilisk."

A beat of silence.

"What?!" Hermione snaps, rounding on her friend. "You didn't tell me you were poisoned! Basilisk venom is extremely potent, Harry!"

McGonagall looks like she's holding back a conniption. "We are going straight to the infirmary, Mr. Potter!"

"Finally!" Luffy cheers. "Madam Pomfrey is supposed to have that potion, done, right? The one to save Ace?"

"Yes, but you'll not be seeing him until you're properly taken care of!" McGonagall says firmly.

"I'm fine! Fawkes healed me up perfectly! There isn't even a mark!"

"Fawks? That phoenix from before? He returned? Oh— oh of course!" Hermione's words earn her blank looks from Fred and George so she quickly explains. "Phoenix tears are one of the strongest healing agents in the known world, only unicorn blood can compare with its amazing powers! I can't believe I nearly forgot how strong phoenix tears are! They can heal nearly any ailment, no matter how grievous."

"That's cool." Luffy turns back to the professor. "So I can see Ace, right?"

Despite Hermione's very informative speech, McGonagall is not wholly convinced about Luffy's wellbeing. "After you're examined by Madam Pomfrey, discharged with a completely clean bill of health, properly tidied up, spoken with Professor Dumbledore, eaten, and slept, _maybe_ you will be allowed to visit the younger Mr. Weasley."

"But—"

"The same goes for you two!" She looks at Hermione and Nami sternly.

"You can't—" Luffy tries.

"That's final Mr. Potter! If you continue arguing I'll put you and Mr. Weasley on probation for the quidditch team, and _you'll_ be the one to explain to him why."

She's _good_.

Luffy's mouth closes with comic quickness. Nami smiles and eagerly follows their party to the infirmary. Luffy tries to stray towards the area where Ace and the other petrified victims are shuttered off, but doesn't manage it when McGonagall lets slip to Madam Pomfrey that Luffy was poisoned by a basilisk. He's rushed to a bed with such alacrity it makes Nami's head spin. With a flick of her wand, Madam Pomfrey has a perimeter of curtains set up around him, isolating Luffy completely from the wide eyes of the few other students on the beds suffering from mild magical mishaps. A student covered in blood can only mean something interesting has happened. Harry Potter covered in blood can only mean something incredible has happened— again.

Hermione belatedly gives the sword to Professor McGonagall as the instructor walks out, probably to Dumbledore who can hopefully clean up the mess the school's going to be in a few hours. After that, Hermione stumbles to the nearest bed and collapses into it, barely remembering to take off her shoes. After fighting You-Know-Who and getting swallowed by a snake, Nami's amazed the other girl has made it this far without fainting. Hermione really _is_ only twelve, unlike her and Luffy.

"You should get some rest too, little sister," George says, and while his tone is as light as ever, the only thing she senses behind his tone is concern.

"I want to see Ron first. If I tell, uh, Harry that I've seen him well then he'll probably calm down." She and the twins wince as they hear Madam Pomfrey raise her voice to a dangerous level. The curtains around Luffy's bed are jostling and being pulled fruitlessly from behind their cover, no doubt part of Luffy's physical expression of his displeasure with what's happening. "I hope," she tacks on.

The three sneak over to the closed off section of the infirmary, though any sneaking on their part is unnecessary with the fit Luffy's pitching. Since McGonagall has left and taken with her any threat of probation, he's returned to his default willful state. Nami genuinely thinks a little reassurance about Ace will go a long way for her captain.

When they slip through the drawn up curtains at the end of the infirmary, Nami is faced with a familiar group of people— all of her victims. She doesn't remember the attacks, but she's seen flashes, terrible images of their near-death experiences, in her dreams. Part of her wants to turn around because she is not ready to face them all at once— but her captain won't calm down and accept treatment without a sign of Ace's wellbeing. Nami knows how much her captain cares about him, and she knows too well how far he'll go for Ace.

Speaking of, in the third bed down, she and the twins find Ace. Their brother is leaning over the side of his bed towards the curtains set up behind his cot, straining to hear whatever's going on with Luffy. When he sees the three of them, he whips around in a fit of energy.

"Ginny! Fred! George! What happened? Why is Luffy here?!" And before this, Nami couldn't place that extreme concern Ron felt for Harry. She remembers thinking their closeness was odd, and maybe a bit disturbing because of the intensity. Knowing them as she does, she sees the brotherly bond as clear as a blue summer's day. Even now though, reflecting on what she's seen in the past year or so, there's something very different about how she remembers them. She recalls Ace's calm, polite demeanor from his visit on the _Going Merry_ and how, besides the teasing, the pair didn't really interact the way siblings do, the way she and Nojiko did— especially considering that the brothers had been apart for three years at the time. There had been no overt affection or clinginess, and the ease of their parting had been almost disparate to their claim of brotherhood.

What she's witnessed recently isn't remotely similar. Ace doesn't seem nearly as cool and mild as the person she remembers. His confrontation with Malfoy comes to mind. His violent actions and furious emotions startled so many people, herself included. Beyond that though, he and Luffy are incredibly attached to each other, to the extent that she can barely imagine one without the other. Maybe at the time neither of them wanted to show how close they were, maybe both of them already knew and it didn't need to be said, or maybe the events leading up to their deaths scarred them.

She doesn't know for sure. Because Luffy's very decision to go to Marineford speaks of a deep familial love. Though, admittedly, Nami doesn't think Luffy could love any other way than deeply. Still, the simple fact remains; she's standing before the man her captain died to save. The man who he was willing to die for. The man whose life he considered above all others, above even his crew and—and— and suddenly, she isn't sure how she feels about this at all. It wasn't Ace's fault, and she had accepted (not necessarily willingly) Luffy's death a long time ago, but a few years after the event at Marineford, an eye-witness reported their experiences. And they witnessed Luffy and Ace's demise. She doesn't hate Ace, she won't... but she can't help but think _if he hadn't turned around to face Akainu she would never have lost Luffy, their crew would never have lost him, and a lifetime later it wouldn't still hurt so much—_

"Gin? Are you alright?" Fred asks, placing his hand on her shoulder and peering at her with concern. Her other two brothers have similar looks on their faces. And yes, that's how she'll think about it. Fred and George and Ron. Ace can wait. She can't handle it right now, so he'll have to.

Ron scoots as far back as he's able so she can sit down. It's then that she notices his strangely restrictive movements.

"Restraining charm?" George guesses with good humor.

Ron frowns and crosses his arms. "I feel completely fine. I don't see why I need to be kept for observation!"

"Just see it as an excuse to skip class!" Fred says.

"Fred and I could only be so lucky."

"Missed opportunities, brother," Fred says with mock sympathy. "Maybe the next time a basilisk is let loose in the school we'll be luckier."

Nami tenses. She knows they're unaware of the entire story and her miserably large part in it, but the mere thought of petrifying two more of her brothers makes her heart hurt. Seeing her distressed expression, both Fred and George stop immediately. Ron on the other hand has a sudden look of enlightenment, and she realizes that he _remembers_. Ron shifts further away and gives her a suspicious glance. Before he can speak, she decides to nip his unease in the bud.

"Harry's fine by the way. He, Hermione, and I went down to the Chamber of Secrets and killed the basilisk. And destroyed the journal. Apparently Tom Riddle was the heir of Slytherin and a younger version of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named preserved in an enchanted diary. Hermione drew this magical sword from the Sorting Hat. I think Fawkes brought it, Dumbledore's phoenix. Probably." Nami waves her hand in dismissal. "Anyways, You-Know-Who went down pretty hard after Hermione used the sword to destroy the diary. I don't think we'll be seeing him again any time soon. With that taken care of, we headed back up and found McGonagall. There we ran into Fred and George and now we're here."

Her very calm, abridged story leaves all the boys slack-jawed and wide-eyed.

"You're kidding," Fred says numbly.

"That's—" George shakes his head.

Even Ron looks a little incredulous.

She makes hard eye-contact with him. "Do you really think he wouldn't do that?"

Ron hedges before admitting defeat. "Nah, that sounds like something he'd do for sure." He gives her a half-smile, seeming to believe her unstated argument that she's alright, no longer possessed. "I'm only sad I didn't get to go down and get my dues. I have unfinished business with that snake."

"Harry beat you to the punch. Though the basilisk might be alive down there... who knows?" After a pause, Nami adds, "He named it actually."

Fred and George, who evidently remember the incident with the snake during the dueling lesson, start snickering.

Ron rubs his forehead, clearly familiar with Luffy's habit of naming creatures. "Of course he did. What was it? Snaky? Slinky? Scaly?"

"Sabo 2," she says, with no small bit of confusion. Luffy's random to be sure, but there is a strange amount of sense to his randomness. His naming habit usually involved one of the creature's characteristics. Or food. Often both. She wonders if Ron knows anything about it since he's known Luffy longer.

She expects confusion, exasperation, or even understanding. She doesn't expect the mess of emotions swirling in his eyes. Anger and sadness and regret are closest to the surface and she balks at the sudden intensity.

"That idiot!" Ron growls suddenly.

"Ron?" George asks with a furrowed brow.

"Why the _hell_ did he name it _that?"_ Ron starts wrestling with the invisible restrictions binding his body, to no effect.

"What is it? What does it mean?" Nami asks. Her brother seems not to hear her.

"Why choose that one? He's so bloody stupid!" Ron finally shouts, and their group is drawing plenty of eyes from the other people in the closed off section, and she's sure some student's outside are just as intrigued.

"Ron, calm down!" Fred says more seriously, alarm in his eyes.

"What the hell is wrong with him? Why would he do that?!"

"What does Sabo 2 mean?" Nami stares him in the eyes intently, demanding an answer.

"It's— He was important. Luffy _can't_ just names something that _._ We promised— And Sabo— " Ron starts and stops repeatedly before slowly deflating. "It doesn't matter," he mutters darkly.

The silence that follows is awkward. Not even the twins know what to do in the face of Ron's sudden, unexplained tantrum. Nami bites her lip, regretting even mentioning it offhand. She thought he'd appreciate Luffy's familiar habit and relax, but evidently it had the opposite reaction. Mulling over his words, the meaning of Sabo 2 remains a mystery to her. The former navigator does want to answer Ron's question though.

"He said it was because it lost a tooth," Nami says eventually. "The snake. That's why he named it Sabo 2, apparently."

Ron's distress and ambivalence slowly drain at her explanation.

"I guess that makes sense," he murmurs to himself, making Nami wonder why that makes sense in their strange world. She doesn't ask though, and Ron isn't done anyways.

"That's such a stupid reason," he says, running a hand through his hair. His words lack heat. There's mostly weary acceptance and a trace of wistfulness instead. "I'm still going to beat him up when I get out of here."

"You might have to take a rain-check," Nami says. "I think he's going to be here for a while."

"Is he hurt?" Immediately the caring, overbearing older brother is switched back on, and honestly, the sudden changes in mood are exhausting Nami.

"He was hurt, but he was healed with Phoenix tears," Nami says. Because that's all that matters. She didn't lose him, she didn't have to go through that again after finally finding him once more, he's okay, she's okay, from now on _everything_ will be okay—

"Honestly, Ron, he looked completely fine." George's voice is reassuring.

"None of us would've guessed he was poisoned by a basilisk if Gin didn't say something," Fred adds.

Nami tenses and quickly adds, "But phoenix tears completely wiped it from his system. No poison. He's completely fine!"

Apparently she needn't worry because Ron's eyes are on the curtains.

"Poison, huh?" he murmurs.

Fred and George exchange glances the way they always do when they're concerned. As for Nami, she's weary and at a loss. Dealing with Ron right now is an absolute minefield. She wouldn't have noticed the guilt, pain, and regret in his expression if she was just Ginny, but as she is, every subtle emotion is practically screamed from his expressive eyes. Sometimes it seems like it would be simpler to return to that, because when she was just Ginny, she didn't have so many conflicting emotions rolling around in her mind, and everything was so much cleaner and uncomplicated. That simplicity likely had more to do with her age than anything else, but still, the purity of that existence appeals to the navigator. And then Nami quickly dismisses that thought, because just Ginny didn't have friends, and just Ginny didn't have _Luffy_. Speaking of...

"Ron, why don't you write a letter to Harry," Nami suggests. "I'll take it over to him."

She gets three sideways looks.

"He's not going to calm down until he knows you're not petrified anymore," she explains. "Even though the poison is gone, he didn't have the easiest time wrestling with the basilisk before, so it'd be better if he gave in sooner rather than later."

Ron nods thoughtfully, and looks around for something to write on. Fred and George immediately answer his unspoken request, summoning a bit of parchment and a pencil respectively from somewhere in Madam Pomfrey's office. Nami brings the movable tray that her brother kicked away in all his violent spasms back to him, and he thanks all of them before bending over the paper and scratching his message down intently.

"Well, Ginny, Ron, I think someone had better tell Percy everything that's happened," Fred says.

"He'll want to hear I'm sure," George adds.

Ron looks up from his paper long enough to give both of them a dry look. "It has nothing to do with the fact that it's Tuesday, and on Tuesdays he has prefect meetings?"

"Not at all," they answer in unison.

"And neither of you will be mentioning how our sister slayed a basilisk down in the Chamber of Secrets in front of all his peers, right?" His words make Nami want to roll her eyes. Half of her wants to correct both Fred and George so they know what's really going on. The other half isn't remotely prepared for their stunned looks. And besides, Percy's reaction will be priceless, she's sure.

"We're shocked by your accusations!" Fred says with a grin. "Have a little faith!"

Ron points at them with his pencil. "I have faith that you'll do exactly what I expect you to do."

"Well, I for one am concerned about our older brother," George says with dignity.

"Someone's got to let him know!" Fred says firmly.

"Oh, and we have to owl Mum," George notes suddenly.

"Professor McGonagall will probably take care of that." Ron's expression goes a little grim.

"I'm sure they'll want to come up," Nami says a little uneasily. She doesn't know how she's going to explain herself to her parents...

All of them shift uncomfortably. None of them are looking forward to the smothering they're going to receive upon her visit. The twins take it upon themselves to lighten the mood though.

"You, me, Ronnie, Ginny, Percy, Mum, and Dad? We should invite the rest of the Weasley clan and have our family reunion here!" George suggests with a grin.

"Something tells me Madam Pomfrey wouldn't like that very much." Nami manages a smile as she banishes her concerns for the moment.

"And I'd rather my bedside not become a family event." Ron snorts.

"No luck there Ronnie." Fred smirks.

"Oh, and you'd both better brace yourselves for Percy; I'm sure he has a lecture for each of you!" Both grinning, the twins slip back out of the curtains.

The loss of the frantic energy always swirling about the twins is a welcome one. Nami's tired. Between her very trying day, the twins, and the ambivalent Ron, she's emotionally and physically spent. She'd much rather be unconscious for Percy's first visit; Nami is in no state to weather one of his lectures. But she can't rest knowing Luffy's resisting treatment. Honestly, he's so ridiculous sometimes.

"I'm glad you're alright, Gin," Ron says, his eyes flicker up from his message as he speaks.

 _I'm also glad I'm not possessed by a purist mass-murderer._

She doesn't say that though, instead she nods and adds, "Me too."

"When I woke up I was really worried," he admits, erasing a bit of his writing as he speaks. Nami smiles inwardly. It seems Ron retained his awkwardness when it comes to emotional confrontation— this excludes Luffy for reasons anyone who knows her captain immediately understands. She can't fault him for caring about Luffy more, for only revealing himself to Luffy. The same goes for her. She's been Ginny for eleven years now, but she lived an entire lifetime as Nami. She knows that their young family bond really doesn't compare to some of the relationships they've had with other people in their first world. She knows that some bonds are precious, and that love of that kind isn't reserved just for blood family. With their other memories, they might as well be strangers. So Ron's inability to look her in the eyes as he speaks is more amusing than it is offensive.

"I wasn't sure if you were still under Riddle's influence. I wasn't sure if I should warn somebody. I knew it wasn't you, but I was concerned about whatever was controlling you." He's very careful to clarify for fear of hurting her feelings, she suspects. "When I asked Madam Pomfrey if she could get you for me, she said they couldn't find you." Ron takes a deep breath. "She said that you, L—Harry, and Hermione were missing." He gestures humorlessly to his spell-bound form. "My request to look for you was denied."

"You wouldn't have found us anyways." Nami shrugged.

"Admittedly the Chamber of Secrets was one of my considerations, but not at the top of the list. I probably should have known better. He's really no good at staying out of trouble." Ron pauses. "Where was it anyways?"

"First floor girl's bathroom."

He pauses before slowly shaking his head. "Sometimes I can't believe this world."

Nami smirks, fully catching everything that statement means. "It's the strangest, isn't it? Well, you really didn't miss out much. I was unconscious for most of it anyways. I didn't even get to see Hermione destroy He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. I would have paid to see her wielding that magical sword. Though I didn't see it, I also think Luffy punched the snake out, which is just so typical of him."

Ron smiles into his paper as he continues to write. "He never changes."

"He's Luffy. What did you expect?"

"Exact—" Realization hits Ron so suddenly that he physically freezes, pencil mid-word. His face turns up from his paper so fast Nami thinks she hears a snap. He stares at her with wide eyes, looking over her face for some clue, some hint. He swallows before speaking.

"You... who are you?"

Nami smiles. She isn't surprised he doesn't recognize her immediately. He isn't her captain, can't _know_ her with one look the way Luffy can, even discombobulated by poison, with his life nearly ending—

"I'm Nami. It's nice to meet you again, Ace." She was careful before to keep her tone and cadence of speech similar to Ginny's. Switching back to her now more familiar method of speech, the differences are like night and day. It's not just the accent, it's the incredible surety she speaks with.

"You're—" Ron blinks dumbly for a few moments. "Does he—"

"Knew the moment he saw me."

"When did it happen?" Ron asks, clearly trying to gain a grasp of the situation.

"After I went unconscious in the Chamber of Secrets. Turns out Tom was sapping my energy to make himself grow stronger. I— I don't know exactly what triggered my memories returning, but when I woke up, I was Nami too."

Ron nods in understanding, slowly digesting her words. "Same for us."

"When did it happen for you? I'm going to guess sometime in first year. You changed a lot after that." She pauses. "It didn't happen at different times, did it?" That's a horrible thought. Nami doesn't know what she'd do if she suddenly woke up as a new person in a new world with new memories without anyone else there to anchor her.

"It happened to both of us at the same time. We were on the Hogwarts express and I was trying to find a seat. There was a car with only Luffy in it, well, Harry." He corrects himself. "He told me his name and I remember thinking 'Merlin, it's Harry Potter!'" Ron laughs a little at the remembrance.

His words make Nami fall short.

"Oh god. Luffy's the-boy-who-lived." She looks upward, in askance of the entire world. All the inevitable trouble and frustration that his additional status as savior will bring makes her head hurt. "Couldn't he be normal? Just for once?" she complains with no heat.

Her brother smiles and laughs. "After I got over the shock of it all, I remember thinking the same thing. I'm a little worried about the wizarding world if Luffy's a role model."

And her captain is. He really is. He's the stuff of storybooks (which he actually is, but not for any of the reasons the wizarding world could possibly know).

"What happened after?" she presses on.

"Nothing too much. We touched when we went to shake hands and I just knew. Everything flashed before me so suddenly, and when I came out of it I saw Luffy. It was strange, but just from looking him in the eye I knew it was him. It was so surprising! I mean, we had both just—"

He stops looking conflicted and pained. Nami slowly realizes that, like her, they were brought back right after their deaths... Their last memories were of holding each other and bleeding out.

She can't imagine what it must be like to go from the chaos of Marineford to a train on the way to a magic school. Nami's own death was innocuous and peaceful, so the change isn't as terrible— but for them it must've been jarring to say the least.

Nami struggles to find the right words to express herself, but the look on Ron's face gives her more pause. He's staring blankly forward, eyes empty and gaze fixed somewhere beyond the infirmary. Nami waves her hand in front of his face, but doesn't get a reaction. And oh, oh god. Nami recognizes it now. Blatant, debilitating trauma. They haven't worked through it. Of course they haven't; they've only been back for a bit more than a year. She doubts they've even talked about it. Luffy probably suffers the same way. Luffy. _Luffy_ —

"Ron." She shakes his shoulders violently until he starts beneath her hands.

"What?" he asks, and Nami has a sneaking suspicion he doesn't understand what's happening. The navigator bites her lip and decides against saying anything. They have enough of their plates as it is. She'll talk to him about it later. And Luffy. She _needs_ to talk to Luffy and make sure he's okay, help him be okay. It's only fair after he granted her the capacity to be okay.

"You were spacing out."

"Sorry. It's stressful, with the Chamber of Secrets and Luffy laid up—" He pauses before turning to her. "I'm sorry. This has to be so much more stressful for you. I shouldn't be complaining." There's that politeness she remembers from her first encounter with him.

"It's alright. I'll be good after some food and sleep, and I'll be great when Luffy gets out and can stop wreaking havoc in the infirmary."

Ron catches her meaning. After quickly finishing off his note, he folds it in half and gives it to her.

Nami holds it in both hands and waits for a moment. "We need to talk— all of us. But for now..."

Ron nods, understanding what she's not saying.

"Feel better soon, Gin," he says.

"You too, Ron." She exits back into the main area of the infirmary before slipping past the other curtains and going to Luffy's bedside. Madam Pomfrey is casting over him with a frustrated look on her face— it's understandable because it seems like Luffy's taken a couple sleeping draughts but he's still stubbornly awake. Nami isn't surprised.

"Nami," he murmurs. "You're back. Are you? And Ace? Is everything... mmm." His sentences are less coherent than usual, but Nami understands.

"Everything's fine."

"Miss Weasley, I know that I haven't gotten to you yet, but I'd hoped you'd follow Miss Granger's example," Madam Pomfrey says with an unhappy tone. It might frighten a young girl, but Nami knows how lightly she's being treated (especially compared to Luffy). The benefits of being a first year, she supposes.

"I will, honest. But I have a message from Ron. I think it'll calm him down."

Madam Pomfrey still looks displeased, but she's willing to take any help she can get to gain Luffy's cooperation. Or at the very least, a ceasefire of his stubbornness.

Nami tries to give Luffy the letter, but one failed clumsy swipe of his hand is enough to stop that. With the way his eyes are opening and closing sporadically, she'd wager he can't read it at all at the moment. So, Nami pulls over a chair and sits close to his head before reading aloud.

 _"Dear Luffy,_

 _Stop being so stubborn. You know if you fight Madam Pomfrey she's just going to make you stay longer."_

Said nurse lets out an amused huff at the words. Nami almost forgot she was also listening. She quickly edits the letter in her mind to exclude anything suspicious. These include all the threats of beatings and spars Ron mentions so frequently. They don't want to leak too much... Thankfully, the name Luffy doesn't mean anything to the older witch, other than a little nickname from Ron.

 _"I'm glad to hear you and everyone are safe. Apparently you all slayed a basilisk. Don't do stuff like that without me. But I'm proud of you, you idiot. Everyone's alright so you can stop worrying. I'm sure Hermi—"_

Here is where his text stops and restarts.

" _It's amazing that you found her, I'm so happy for you. One precious na—"_ She alters the too-strong word. "— _friend back. We have a lot to talk about. Some serious things, but a lot of good things too. Though I know how badly you want to talk and hang out with her, you have to get out of the infirmary first, so listen to what Madam Pomfrey says. Besides, I think Ginny's tired too, so let her sleep as well._

 _Love, Ace_

 _P.S. We'll spring you from the infirmary like last time if we have to, but if we do it too many times Madam Pomfrey will to catch on."_

Nami leaves the last bit in purposefully, and it startles a laugh from the nurse. She shakes her head with amusement.

"Thanks, Nami," Luffy slurs. "You're the best. Mmm— love you. Love all of you. Love Franky. Love Robin—"

"Shhh, go to sleep, Luffy," she urges. Her captain's face relaxes and he falls asleep with a smile. She forgot about this, forgot how he could sleep with a smile, forgot how her presence, her being, could make someone fall asleep with a smile.

Nami leans over his unconscious head and kisses his cheek.

"Love you too, Captain," she whispers. When she raises her head, she boldly and unabashedly meets Madam Pomfrey's surprised gaze.

"Goodnight," she says simply before walking to the bed next to Hermione's.

After shucking off her outer robes and slipping her shoes off, she lies down beneath the covers. Despite her weariness, so many thoughts run through her head. Who is she? How can she behave an eleven-year-old again? What is she going to do about her parents? How is she going to confront Ace? What if more of their nakama come back? What if they're all together again? What if You-Know-Who returns? What if she can't forgive Ace? How is she going to survive puberty again?

Her life has been flipped upside-down.

Every inch of it is covered in chaos.

But with Luffy around, how could it be any other way? It's worth it. She knows it's worth it. She'd suffer any kind of pain if it meant getting her captain back. This is a light price to pay. And with Luffy beside her, Nami doesn't think she'll mind paying it.

* * *

The day after the incident in the Chamber with Voldemort, Dumbledore looks at The-Boy-Who-Lived from behind his mahogany desk. The bright morning light leaks through his curtains in streaks, adding natural warmth to his office. An easy atmosphere is exactly what Dumbledore is aiming for, as this conversation will likely be a hard one. Regrettably, Dumbledore knows it won't be the most difficult one by far. Still, he needs to clear up some of Harry's unspoken concerns, even if they will unsettle him to talk about. In the long run Harry will be better for it. And so Dumbledore gives him a slight smile.

"Harry," Dumbledore begins. "The first thing I must do is thank you. You must have shown true loyalty to me down in the Chamber of Secrets. That's the only way Fawkes could ever be summoned."

"Me and Hermione didn't give up," Harry answers easily, smiling.

"Even so, your bravery is commendable. Through your courage you managed to draw the sword of Godric Gryffindor from the Sorting Hat." Truly remarkable.

"Huh? Oh. That wasn't me. Hermione's the one who drew the sword."

Dumbledore doesn't let it show on his face, but he is genuinely surprised. While Hermione Granger is an impressive witch, he had not realized she'd grown into her potential so much already. He remembers seeing her (as he remembers every student who has come into Hogwarts since he became headmaster) when she approached the stool to be sorted. He could sense her shyness and anxiety that manifested in false confidence. Later, when she fell in with Harry and Ron, she changed dramatically. He supposes they're to blame for her rapid growth in confidence and bravery. Harry may not have pulled the sword from the Sorting Hat, but his ability to give others courage is where his incredible strength lies. Apparently, it was not Harry's bravery that saved the day, but his teamwork and capacity for inspiration. While not the traditional trait of a single, epic hero, when it comes to the humble boy, Dumbledore finds it rather suits him.

"Both of you managed to face down the basilisk and beat it." Dumbledore gives credit where credit is due. "The only other person known to have slain a basilisk is Godric Gryffindor. The sword Miss Granger drew from the hat is actually the weapon he used to defeat it. Ironically enough, that serpent was also created by Salazar Slytherin. I imagine Godric caught his first attempt, but he managed to make a second, it seems, before he left. They never did get along after that..." He's wandering again. Where was he? "Ah, either way, this is no small feat, for either of you."

Harry seems not to catch his intention, because he corrects the elder wizard. "We didn't really beat him."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I sort of asked him to stop. And he did. Hermione killed Thomas, so he only had me to listen to."

While Harry's confusion with Voldemort's name is interesting (because why make it longer?), his words are more so.

"The basilisk listened to you," Dumbledore murmurs. It seems the traits Harry and Voldemort share are more than they appear.

"Yeah, I think I scared it," Harry says.

"Harry." Dumbledore fixes him with a serious, but not unkind, stare. "Do you remember yesterday, when I asked you if you had anything you wanted to tell me?"

"Huh? Yeah," Harry answers, looking a little bemused by the change of topic.

"I will ask again," Dumbledore says. "Is there anything you want to tell me? Anything at all?"

Harry at least has the grace to think about it long and hard (and oh dear, he looks like he's straining himself considerably. Dumbledore's suddenly concerned he may still have a concussion) before answering with a negative once more.

Harry is indeed brave, and like all brave individuals, he possesses a smidge of misplaced courage. It seems that the young wizard intends to deal with the burden of his thoughts and concerns on his own. It's sad that Harry doesn't feel comfortable enough around Dumbledore to be open with him, but considering the distance between them, and their minimal interaction, perhaps it isn't too inconceivable (Dumbledore really should make an effort to mingle with his students more). Well, be that as it may, Dumbledore will show Harry that it's okay to rely on others. It isn't a sign of weakness, nor an inconvenience. Part of Tom's downfall involved his self-imposed isolation from people, from connections. Harry is wonderfully unlike him in that aspect. He has brilliant, supportive friends in his life, and Dumbledore hopes that one day, Harry will consider him one of them.

"You told me, Harry, that the snake listened to you as it did Tom. Why do you think that is?"

Harry opens his mouth, pauses, then closes it as though he was about to say something he shouldn't. And the temptation to peek into the boy's mind is incredibly strong. But Dumbledore resists. Not only is it against his ethics to gaze into his students' minds when it is not an emergency, but the headmaster worries that Voldemort will one day try and force his way into Harry's thoughts. A mind regularly subjected to occlumency is _far_ easier to break into. So the old wizard waits for Harry to choose what he wants to say.

Eventually, what he decides upon is, "I'm a Parselmouth."

"Exactly. As Tom was capable of speaking to snakes, so are you. The trait is shared between you."

"Why?" Harry asks.

"Do you remember what I told you before? When Voldemort tried to kill you as a baby, Lily's sacrifice and love protected you from him, and reversed the direction of the spell. What you may not realize, is that some of Voldemort's power transferred to you that night." Dumbledore waits for a reaction. All he receives is a faint tilt of Harry's head. The student's eyes are blank and extremely hard to decipher.

Dumbledore continues. "You and he are connected. It's why you share some of his traits, his abilities. There are similarities between the two of you, but I know you Harry, you are good. Don't be afraid to tell me anything in the future."

Harry blinks. "I wasn't afraid of telling you about that. I just didn't think it mattered. I'm not him, so it's not important, right?"

The bluntness takes Dumbledore by surprise, but not as much as Harry's next statement.

"Besides, you're wrong. I'm not good. I'm just Harry."

A smile spreads over the older wizard's face. "It amazes me that you can find such strength, my boy," he says with quiet joy.

"I have nakama." Harry speaks those profound words so simply, as though it's obvious. Although the word is not commonly spoken, the profoundness of his usage of it is beautifully clear, and Dumbledore is stunned by the unbelievable strength that already dwells within the young wizard's heart. To be honest, Harry doesn't really behave like either of his parents, but he possesses a warmth unlike anything Dumbledore's ever seen before. And he's wrong, because it's just that which makes him good.

"May I be excused?" Harry asks, and he's fidgeting; a regular habit of his.

With an indulgent expression, Dumbledore nods. "Of course. Thank you for your honesty, Harry."

"Yeah!" he chirps. With energetic steps, Harry leaves the room.

Dumbledore's amazement hasn't faded. Harry is unlike anything he ever imagined. His capacity for love is astounding, and the headmaster knows that faced with such powerful and pure emotion, Tom will never prevail. Ah, speaking of, Dumbledore's eyes wander to the bits of diary Fawkes salvaged for him from the Chamber of Secrets. He casts a _reparo_ spell to assemble the shredded remains. Though bits of pages are missing, the cover is whole. Dumbledore isn't worried that Tom will return— his soul has already been severed from the object. He intended to give it to Harry as a sign of the boy's capacity for good, but it seems he doesn't really need it. Either way, Dumbledore stands and walks to the door, sensing the young wizard hasn't gone far. As the staircase rotates, the headmaster catches Harry's conversation with the young Mr. Weasley who, evidently and unsurprisingly, was waiting for him.

"You blockhead!" Ron says. "You should have said thank you. Don't just say 'yeah.'"

Harry laughs. "Sorry, I forgot."

"You always forget." Mr. Weasley's voice is blatantly exasperated.

"Excuse me, boys," the headmaster says as the gargoyle stops moving and he steps off the stairs.

Ron looks up, clearly startled to see him.

"Headmaster," the young boy greets politely, regaining himself.

"Mr. Weasley." He nods in acknowledgement. "I'm glad to see you are well again. Many people were concerned for your health, myself included."

"Er, thank you, Headmaster."

"Harry, I wanted to give you this." Dumbledore extends the diary towards him. Harry accepts it, but his expression is clearly puzzled.

"Why are you giving me this?"

Ron sighs and rubs the bridge of his nose in a surprisingly mature motion.

"Harry, what did we just discuss?" he asks with exasperation.

"Oh. Right. Thank you, Headmaster. Why are you giving me this?"

Ron opens his mouth, but seems to think better of it. He gives Harry an exasperated look, but also turns curious eyes to Dumbledore.

"As you helped destroy Tom, I thought I would leave it in your possession to do with it as you please."

"I don't really want it," Harry admits, extending the diary back towards the headmaster.

"Don't be so rude! You can't give a gift back like that!" Ron says in a whisper too chastising to be quiet.

"Okay, okay. Here, Ace." Harry offers the diary to his red-haired friend.

"Why would I want the diary of a purist freak?! Besides, re-gifting something isn't any better than giving it back," Ron tells him.

"Why would _I_ want a diary of a purist freak?"

"As a symbol of your victory? I don't know. You can do whatever you want with it, Lu, but don't be rude to the professor."

"Ah. Okay, I get it... Do you think Fang would like it?"

Dumbledore blinks at Harry's intention of giving the diary of Tom Riddle to Hagrid's hunting dog. A small laugh leaves his throat. He notices the surprised looks on the boys' faces, and is admittedly rather surprised himself. He smiles with great regularity, but finding true humor in the world has grown increasingly hard for him. Harry and Ron's honest and simple relationship seems to bypass that.

With a flick of his wand, Dumbledore levitates the book from Harry's hands and reclaims it before slipping it into his robes.

"Why don't I keep it in my possession for the time being? If you ever wish to see it or take it for yourself, you'll know where to find it." Dumbledore's compromise earns him twin smiles, one of easy joy, and the other relief.

"Thank you, Professor," Ron says.

"Thank you!" Harry echoes.

"You are quite welcome. Now I do believe it is near lunch-time, is it not? Why don't you two run along?"

Ron nods and turns to leave, but he stops when he notices his friend isn't following him. Dumbledore is also slightly bemused by Harry's planted form. He wonders if there's something the boy wants to ask, maybe advice, or a private word—

"Aren't you coming?" Harry queries. And it's about the last thing he expected to hear.

"Yes, but I'll be going through the professor's entrance. You'll see me down there," the headmaster assures.

"Okay. You can come with us though, if you want to."

Dumbledore is again taken aback by Harry's unnecessarily kind actions and words.

"It's very nice of you to offer..." Though he wants Harry to see him as more than just an instructor, he doesn't want to show favoritism. Then again, Dumbledore was just thinking about how he needs to mingle with his students more. There will hardly be a better opening than this. Besides, this may be a sign of Harry's growing trust in him. So he takes it. "I accept."

"Huh?" Mr. Weasley looks surprised, but his expression turns to embarrassment when he meets his headmaster's eyes.

"Let's go, I'm hungry!" Harry declares, walking towards the Great Hall. His gait is casual, as though walking with the headmaster is not an event that demands him to change his behavior. Considering what Dumbledore knows about the boy, he doubts such an occasion will ever occur. He and Ron join him on either side and they begin the trek from the third floor to the Great Hall.

Mr. Weasley clearly does not echo his friend's easy-going acceptance of their third member, and seems to hold himself awkwardly as they walk. Dumbledore attempts to make himself as unobtrusive as possible to ease the young boy.

Utterly unaware of the mood, Harry says, "I hope they have that awesome pastry from yesterday. Do you remember, it had all the custard and stuff?"

"The one with the strawberries?" Ron asks.

"Mille fuille," Dumbledore tells them idly.

"What?" the red-haired student asks.

"It's the name of the desert," the professor says.

"Oh." The red-haired boy pauses.

"Millfy, I like that," Harry muses aloud to himself, absolutely butchering the French.

Ron chuckles and Dumbledore smiles as they step onto a moving staircase.

"Well, if you want to eat that desert, all you need do is think of it." The moment his mouth closes, Dumbledore finds himself on the end of two intense stares.

"You mean we can pick what appears on the plates?" Ron asks seriously, like Dumbledore's answer has great weight.

"Yes, the enchanted tables will supply whatever food you actively wish to eat. Though it may take a bit to appear."

Now there is awe, and Dumbledore finds an eager expression has taken over the previous hesitance on Ron's face. Questions pour from both of them, inane (can they make ramen? What about salmon? And takoyaki?) and inquisitive (can it read our minds? How does it know what we want? Since you're the headmaster, does that mean you know where the kitchen is?).

He answers their questions, except for the one about the kitchen to their immense disappointment. It doesn't dampen their overall mood though.

"This is the best place! Everything's so magical and awesome! And the people are so great! I love it here!" Harry exclaims, beaming so strongly it's slightly dazzling. Dumbledore feels relief and happiness take root in his heart. All he wants is for Harry to feel like he has a home that accepts him, to know he is cared for. And though not perfect, Harry appears to be genuinely happy here. It seems Dumbledore hasn't let down James and Lily as much as he thought.

"I agree." Ron pauses. Dumbledore knows he picks his words with far more care than Harry does. He says only what he means, which is why his next statement rings utterly true.

"This is a really wonderful school."

Between Harry's bright smile, and Ron's considerate words, Dumbledore feels a weight he never realized he was carrying disappear from his shoulders. He really does need to spend more time with his students, if only to remind himself why he does what he does. Everything he's ever done, every price he's paid, every battle he's fought, is worth this golden moment in time.

Harry chats cheerfully the rest of the way, with the occasional teasing from Ron, and a comment here and there from Dumbledore. The friction vanishes between Ron and the headmaster, and Dumbledore earns one of the red-haired student's smiles, which seemed to hide when he first joined their group.

They ignite questions and stares as they enter the Great Hall, and Dumbledore soon hopes the sight won't be as uncommon and surprising in the future. However, perhaps with Harry along, it will always be the case. Harry gives a short wave to the headmaster and an easy "Bye!" before eagerly sitting next to the wide-eyed Miss Granger and closing his eyes, likely to try and summon the food. Ron follows after slower, and with a fond smile.

As Dumbledore takes his usual seat at the head table, he feels his colleagues' unease, but leaves it be. Only his deputy headmistress finds the gumption to ask.

"Headmaster, may I inquire about why you accompanied Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley to the Great Hall. There's nothing wrong, is there?"

"No, everything's quite right." Dumbledore's eyes crinkle. "As for why I joined them... they asked me to."

* * *

Despite her maturity and self-awareness, Nami can't help but feel anxious when the Hogwarts Express reaches the terminal. Her time with Luffy is dwindling. Nami's eyes flicker to her captain, who chats energetically with Hermione as he gathers his luggage. He then proceeds to set Nami's and Hermione's down with the same ease he always has. Slowly, she walks in the back of their party, fighting against the rush of other students trying to leave.

The moment she and Ron disembark from the platform and step into the crowd, their mother descends upon them like a bird of prey— a loving, overbearing bird of prey. She embraces both of them, clearly still not over the danger they both faced. Nami is glad for the hug, glad for the affection. Though her mother isn't like Bellemere, not at all, she feels the same selfless love. She's also incredibly grateful for her parents' instant acceptance and forgiveness for what she'd done.

When they came and visited her and Ron at Hogwarts, Nami explained to them, in sentences incredibly hard to form, what happened with her and the diary. After she was done there was a silence. Then the tears hovering on her mother's face dropped and she reached for Nami and asked—

"Are you okay?! Oh, my baby, this must've been terrible!" Everything else dissolved into unintelligible sobs.

Her father wrapped an arm around her shocked form, tears also on his face and told Nami that they were both so incredibly glad that she was alright, and that her courage was truly amazing.

Nami is a grown woman, has comforted her kids in the exact same way, knows how to deal with her feelings— but upon hearing those words, she's a child again, needing that acceptance and miraculously receiving it.

So while her mother's hovering and nit-picking still makes her roll her eyes, she seeks to deepen the embrace, letting her mother linger for however long she wants.

From above her other arm, she and Ron make eye-contact. He smiles at her, partially awkward, and partially understanding.

It's tough between them— they're both playing a strange new game of trying to figure out who they are and who each other is. It was probably easier for Ron and Luffy— after the whole Boy-Who-Lived bit, Ron doesn't have any connection to Luffy. But Nami and Ron of them have history. Is she Ron's little sister? Or is she the sixteen-year-old navigator he met in Alabasta? Or is she the adult who passed on peacefully with her two adopted children by her bedside— frankly it's a mess. Their first conversation after they got out of the hospital in the library was laced with those silent questions and awkwardness as Ron realized he doesn't know her, not really. Then Luffy appeared, and they were who they are around Luffy, which is much less confusing. She's worried what will happen when Luffy isn't there to smooth things out. Because Nami still isn't sure how she feels about everything that happened with Luffy and Ace, if she is even capable of forgiving the latter.

She needs Luffy with her for so many reasons. Problems and awkwardness disappears when he's around, and she's anxious and eager for the time to come again. Nami already misses her captain.

She looks over her mother's embrace to face her captain who's laughing with Hermione a little away about something or other.

Nami doesn't want him to leave.

They make eye-contact, all too brief, before Luffy spies his aunt and uncle and turns to make his final goodbyes with an easy smile, as if he isn't going back to abusive adults who starved a _child,_ who starved _Luffy._ Nami wiggles out of her mother's embrace and walks to him with tunnel vision. She stops too close for standard decency, and too far for the comfort she needs.

She doesn't _want_ to say goodbye, doesn't want to leave his presence ever. The last time she did that, went into the clouds too far away for either or their grasping hands to reach, he died. So she doesn't say the words.

"Don't." Nami makes hard, purposeful eye-contact, and it tells him about her pain and her love all in a moment. His eyes go blank for a second, before a smile spreads over his face.

"Okay."

"If you don't write back in one week, I _will_ come and get you... again," Ron says. Though she didn't notice when he came beside her, his presence isn't at all unexpected.

"If you don't want to be there anymore, feel free to not respond for a week, so Ron and I will have an excuse to pick you up." Nami gives him a grin.

"I bet you could help him find his way to the Dursley's _way_ faster!" Luffy smiles.

Nami blinks, and realizes that he still thinks about her as a navigator still, even though they're in this new world with far too much land. It should be a burden, but all she feels is a challenge. She'll delve into all the astronomy textbooks in the house, and any maps she can find. She'll learn the meteorology and climatology of every nook and cranny in this new world. She'll master topography and star positions like she mastered and dominated the Grand Line. Nami doesn't know when the knowledge will come in handy, if ever, but around Luffy, it seems like the logical and right path before her.

She didn't realize, in the past two months Nami's been here, that she's missed being a navigator. And maybe it's only because of Luffy, and his just _being_ here. But coupled with her purpose, she feels inexplicably whole.

Ron and Luffy are saying their goodbyes with all the intensity and love in the world. Passersby immediately avert their eyes.

But Nami stares and smiles and whispers,

"Yes, Captain."

* * *

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 **Here we are! I hope Nami lives up to y'alls expectations.**

 **I made a note about how temperamental Ace is the last chapter, this is just showing it further. This does not mean he'll be like this the whole fic.**

 **IMPORTANT: I have another chapter written out BUT I've decided I'm going to ask you all whether you want it, or if I ought to wait until I finish the whole year to post it. Leave a review telling me what's what. I really get the frustration that comes from an incomplete story, and ending it 2nd year temporarily really is the best I can do...**

 **Also, as I said above I'm combining key One Piece phrases with English- boshi is another word for hat, like cap etc. That's just how I'm running it.**

 **Godric killed a basilisk with the sword a while ago, hence why it can destroy horocruxes.**

 **Did I mention we finished off the second year? Because we did! Next is year three, with Sirius Black.**

 **Thanks so much for reading, let me know what you all would like. I appreciate all the support I've gotten already so much!**


	11. lll: Beyond Being Surprised

**Hello all! I try not to go longer than a year without updating... Welll... Here's a chapter for y'all. Third year is not complete, but I know the opening stuff isn't going to change.**

 **Love, love, love! To my beta breather. They're on FF, so check 'em out!**

 **Infinite gratitude to: RedHeadsRock1010, Guest (11/29/16), Ender the multiverse Detective, DoctorKnight, Guest (11/29/16), BLADE OF ILLUSIONS, poemado, loveliveread, Bluejay Blaze, Zaralann, The Keeper of Worlds, Guest (11/29/16), Thisisarealtagwhy, Azurii, Guest 2, Guest (11/29/16), lusians, nigishikoi (longggg one!), Jo Anna Grace, FireD. Rion, Reithandina, JadeNoRyuu, Allykrau, Speed Reader, of Serendip, Matt, chiharuSAICHI, Guest (12/2/16), Riddle-Snape, The Mightier Pen, Spyrkle10, OrganicAI, FreeFan1412, Guest (12/06/16),** **Guest (12/06/16),** **Guest (12/06/16),** **Guest (12/06/16), SeanHicks4, tanithlipsky, NinjaFoodLover, Xu-zuw, Guest (12/11/16), Minaworldcup, detractis, Key Shinigami, .3950 {4 reviews}, almp15, annea101, Guest (12/30/16), i'm iam, Karen Killa, busaikosensei, LiTtLeVoIcEs, goat99, Crystal Rose Serenity, vampireharry the 2, Wildwoode, Anmak, The Whimsical Ermine, Sylnodel, thedragondemigod123, Tarume, claire nunnaly, ninuhuju, Ruina Nicco, Gamma Cavy, CharmingButIrrational, Guest (03/21/17), soratomoyo-chan, PurplePoltergeist, Kitteninthemoonlight (longgg one!), fierycloud, aggy's mangopulp, weebster, NivMizzet6977, Momma Lici, TheWickedTruth89, Li, Fireblaze-kun, goat99 [again, hello], Gillome, az31r4, joebob323, FanfictionWriterandReader, The Fall of Spring, SilentLadyMusic1002, Guest (11/13/17),** **Guest (11/13/17),** **Guest (11/13/17), nequam-tenshi, Hanzo of the Salamander 2.0, Elliot23, FairyAlchemist400, Rin-isobu-walker, kasterbeus [longg one!], Cho-No-Iro, and Mezuri [with a long one!]. Thank you all so very much for your continual support and feedback! Ya'll keep me coming back here.**

 **Tune in after for my notes on why Ace is Ron and Luffy is Harry.**

* * *

 _Chapter 11: Beyond the Point of Being Surprised_

* * *

Ace is skimming an article in _The Daily Prophet_ about the results of the most recent quidditch match between the Chudly Cannons and the Holyhead Harpies, when his mother interrupts him.

"Ron! Ginny! You have a letter from Harry!" Molly Weasley calls from the kitchen.

The younger two redheads are at her side so suddenly, they may have well apparated.

Ace doesn't think either of them can help the smiles on their faces. It would be a lie to say that Luffy's stupid and charming letters aren't a highlight of their summer. Mrs. Weasley gives the letter to Ace with an amused smile. Ace knows the enthusiasm of her young children still seems sweet to their mother. If she knew they were both full-grown adults mentally, she'd probably me more exasperated than anything— but Ace thinks everyone would agree that it's for the best if she never finds out. Ever.

"Thanks, Mum," Ginny says.

"Yeah, thank you," Ace says. The two of the immediately head to the couches to read the letter in a habit formed over the past month and a half. Once seated, Ginny turns towards Ace with a hint of concern.

"This is a bit fast for him, isn't it?" she says. "He usually takes two or three days to get back to us."

"I was thinking the same thing." Ace's brow furrows as he opens the letter and notices the unusual shortness of the letter. Luffy tends to write long letters because of his rambling sentences. Evidently it takes him a day or two to complete because he gets distracted by something or other, and by that point he has even _more_ to say. Not that Ace or Ginny will ever complain about the length.

Both of them bend their heads to read the letter.

 _Hi Ace and Nami,_

 _I'm craving feast food, but otherwise I'm alright. There are a lot of muggles and stuff around here 'cause it's the suburbs so I can't really practice fighting or anything. It sucks so much! I'm gonna get out of practice. Haki I can still practice sort of, but still. Hey Nami, do you think we could enchant a ship to fly?! That would be the coolest thing ever!_

 _I'm not lonely or anything, I told you I have a friend now so things are fine. And I already said that my new friend is good! You both worry too much. He's awesome, and I'm excited for you two to meet him. You'll both like him, I'm sure._

 _Love,_

 _Luffy_

 _P.S. I almost forgot. I'm staying at the Leaky Cauldron at the moment because I was kicked out of my house. My other aunt, she's reaaaalllyy mean and she has this super ugly dog. And she started saying mean things so I blew her up like a balloon, not on purpose or anything. Sorry._

"What?!" Ace shouts.

"That isn't the sort of thing you put at the end of a letter in the post script!" Ginny exclaims.

"What is it, you two?" Their mother bustles into the living room, looking at them with concern.

"Mum, Harry got kicked out of his house!" Ginny cries.

"Merlin!" the Weasley matriarch utters. "Where is he? We best pick him up right away! Is he at Privet Drive?! I'll apparate right over—"

"He's at the Leakey Cauldron," Ace explains. "Can we come?"

"Oh. Well… If he's at the Leakey Cauldron then I'm sure he's alright," Mrs. Weasley says, calming down. "I bet Dumbledore has already met up with Harry and gotten things squared away."

"What? But we should still visit him!" Ginny cries.

"Ginny, use an inside-voice," Mrs. Weasley warns. "There is a lot of work to be done around the house. Harry can wait a week or so until we all go down for our supplies."

"Can I floo there alone?" Ace asks. "I'll get some of my shopping done early. Please, Mum! He's probably all alone."

"What?! You can't go without me!" Ginny snaps. "If Ron's going, I'm coming too."

Ace keeps his pleading eyes on his mother. "I don't want Harry to be alone for two whole weeks until we go and do our shopping."

"You have been very responsible recently." Mrs. Weasley pauses for a moment. "Yes, very well. I suppose you're old enough to visit Diagon Alley alone." There's a certain mistiness to her words like she can barely believe how old he's gotten, and Ace shifts awkwardly.

"But Mum!" Ginny says.

"Ginny, you're a bit too young, I'm afraid. Why don't you go collect some eggs from the hen-house?"

Ginny crosses her arms and her eyes sharpen into something wily. Ace can sense the rising tide of discontent.

"Mum, I—"

She barely makes it two words in.

"Don't take that tone with me, young lady!" Mrs. Weasley adopts a stern look. "You agreed to help around the house a little more if we bought you that book on maps, now are you going to keep up your side of the bargain, or not?"

"Yes," Ginny mutters. She turns to Ace with a look of dislike and he shrugs. It isn't his fault she can't come. "Tell Harry 'hi' for me, and not to do anything else too stupid."

Ace nods. "I will, but you know him..."

Ginny sighs but heads towards the back door to obey their mother. Mrs. Weasley then goes to the kitchen, leaving Ace to go to the fireplace and impatiently wait for his mother to return. When she does, she's carrying the brown pouch where they store their family's spending money.

"Take care of a few things on your school list dear," she says as she gives him both his list, which has the items they already have crossed off, and handful of coins which he carefully tucks into his pockets. She levels him with a very serious look. "Now I'm trusting you to spend this money appropriately, Ronald. If I hear you bought something frivolous I will have you scrubbing the house with a toothbrush for a month, I don't care if you start the school year late!"

Ace is nearly stricken with the thought of misspending his parents' limited and hard earned money. Maybe if he was thirteen, he wouldn't realize the extent of their poverty, but being older he has a grim understanding of the situation.

"I won't buy anything I don't need, I _promise_ ," he presses solemnly. Her eyes soften at the look on his face and she cups his cheek with one hand.

"I believe you," she says. "Now, do be careful. If you get into any trouble, floo me immediately. Don't go into Knockturn Alley again, and try not to start a ruckus over anything."

"I'll be careful, and when have I ever made a ruckus?" Ace asks.

"Cheeky." His mother gives him a small smile and a sigh. "Alright then, you'd best be off before it gets too late. I want you back before nightfall; some very strange wizards tend to loiter around Diagon Alley at night."

"Okay, I'll see you later, Mum." He picks up a pinch of floo powder and steps into the fire. After taking a breath, he throws down the fine, black particles. "The Leakey Cauldron!"

The world spins for a moment and then Ace finds himself standing in the green flames of the fireplace in the Leakey Cauldron. He quickly steps out to prevent being knocked over by another incoming wizard or witch.

After scanning the tavern, Ace makes a b-line to the counter where Tom is sneezing up a veritable storm. Ace blinks as the barkeep sneezes two or three more times before the fit finally calms and he notices the teen.

"What can I do for you, young man?" Tom asks.

"Er, hello. Can you tell what room Harry Potter is staying in? I'm his friend."

"I'm afraid that I'm not allowed to tell others where guests are staying," Tom tells him. "I can send a knock on his door and tell him you're here if you'd like."

"Do that then, please," Ace requests.

Tom nods. "What—" A violent sneeze cuts him off. "What is your name, young man?"

"Ron Weasley."

"A Weasley, eh? I probably should have guessed that one." Tom chuckles lightly.

Ace's hand raises to his red locks, and he idly wonders if he can grow his hair out like he did before...

The barkeep pulls out his wand and gives a few flicks before another fit of sneezing overwhelms him.

"Thank you," Ace says. The teen doesn't have to wait for long before he hears a door slam open. Seconds after, he sees Luffy running down the stairs.

"Ace!" His brother practically flies at him.

"L— Harry." Ace smiles and embraces his hyper brother.

"You came to visit me! I wasn't expecting you to come. And I only sent that letter like yesterday!"

"You expect me to stay at home when I find out you got kicked out of your house? Not bloody likely." Ace snorts. It's then that Ace notices the other patrons (few though they may be) watching the brothers. As Luffy rambles, Ace subtly pulls him closer to a corner.

"Is your mom here? Did she bring sandwiches? Do they have meat in them?"

"No, she let me come alone as long as I get a little shopping done. Ginny was pretty pissed she couldn't come too." Ace makes a short, dismissive gesture. "But Lu, what happened? You said you blew your other aunt up? I didn't even know you had another aunt!"

"She's my uncle's sister," Luffy explains. "I said it was an accident in my letter, didn't I?"

"That doesn't really explain much," Ace says.

"She was saying mean things and I didn't like it! I don't really know what happened, but I felt like I was using magic, even though I didn't have my wand or anything. And then she was blowing up like a balloon. It was pretty funny actually, 'cause she floated on the ceiling for a long time." Luffy laughs at the remembrance.

"And you got kicked out then?"

"Not exactly. I sort of decided not to stick around."

Ace thinks that's pretty fair, all things considered. If his aunt and uncle already treated him like dirt before he inflated a family member, Ace hates to think about what they'll do after. He hopes that Dumbledore will finally realize that this set-up isn't even remotely a good idea. Like he should have three years ago, in Ace's opinion. Or even earlier, if all the things Luffy's never said are as serious as Ace suspects.

"But it's pretty nice here. And I'm not lonely! My friend, remember the one I told you about in my letters, he's here too!" Luffy cheers.

On the complete opposite side of the spectrum of Luffy's glee, Ace's stomach clenches anxiously. They followed his brother here? What kind of person does that?! That's creepy. Not that he says that.

"I'd love to meet him. Is he in your room? Let's go," Ace rushes.

Luffy nods eagerly before pulling the older brother to his room on the second floor and opening the door. And Ace sees—

Nothing. There's no one in here.

"Did the person leave?" Ace asks. Very suspicious. If they knew Ace was coming up and they ran away, then his distrust is incredibly well placed.

Luffy blinks. "He isn't a person. He's an animal."

Ace pauses for a moment as he lets that sink in before letting out a long sigh. He was worried for nothing. It's so typical for Luffy to get attached to an animal and never clarify that they aren't actually human.

Although now... Ace braces himself for whatever strange kind of creature his brother has managed to find and befriend now.

After making sure no one's around to witness whatever it is that Luffy's about to show Ace, his little brother kneels on the ground by the bed.

"You can come out now!"

A medium sized black-haired dog with brown, intelligent eyes wiggles its way out of the narrow area below the bed. And— and that's it. No scales, feathers, horns, or any combination of the three. It's a dog.

Ace blinks. It's utterly bizarre how normal it is.

"This is Boshi! Boshi, meet Ace." Luffy gestures towards Ace with a wide grin. "He's my older brother."

Boshi tilts his head, and Ace has the strangest sensation that the dog is examining him.

"...You named it Boshi?" Ace doesn't know what he expected. After naming the bloody basilisk Sabo 2, he really should just stop trying to figure out the logic with which his brother names things.

"Yeah. Good name for him, huh?"

Ace rolls his eyes but gives a half-smile. He's glad that it's only a dog, something _normal_ for once and not something weird and dangerous like usual.

Seeming to approve of Ace, Boshi begins stretching on the floor. Still kneeling, Luffy starts scratching Boshi's head and ears. The dog quickly slackens under his ministrations and lies on the floor, boneless. Ace takes in the thinness of the creature and the matted fur.

"Where did you find him?" Ace asks curiously. He settles himself on the floor and slowly pets Boshi's back, well-aware that while relaxed in body language, the dog's eyes follow his hands closely. The wariness of strangers coupled with the malnourished appearance explains it all for Ace— definitely a stray.

"Well, I take a lot of walks in the summertime."

No doubt to escape his borderline abusive relatives, but Ace stays his tongue. No need to ruin the moment by mentioning something his brother is already well aware of.

"I noticed Boshi was following when I was practicing Observation. I tried to talk to him, but he kept running away from me. After a while, I noticed how hungry he looked, so I started bringing food out with me." Luffy grins. "Then we became friends!"

"Don't suppose the Dursley's liked him too much," Ace comments dryly.

Luffy shrugs. "Never tried to bring him back. Whenever I'd go outside though, Boshi'd find me and we'd go exploring!"

"And he followed you from Privet Drive?" Ace asks.

"He came on the Knight Bus with me." Luffy smiles.

"I see." Noting the fondness in his brother's eyes, Ace knows that Boshi will be with them at least for the remainder of their time in Diagon Alley. So, with an open expression he dips his head towards the dog. "Thank you for taking care of my little brother, I know he's a handful."

The dog blinks before a strange coughing laugh escapes its throat. At least it has a sense of humor, Ace supposes.

"Well, shall we get going?" Ace asks, gesturing outside. "I have to get some shopping done before it gets dark and I have to go home."

Though there's subtle disappointment in Luffy's eyes because he won't be staying, his brother still grins at him. "Yeah!" After which he makes a short whistling sound, letting Boshi know to follow as they head out the door.

Luffy slowly edges to the top of the stairs and takes a peek down. After a moment he snaps his fingers, and Boshi darts down the steps and hides beneath the coat rack lying at the foot of the stairs. Luffy proceeds to casually descend the staircase, but Ace can see his eyes calculating. Another low whistle, and Boshi darts under one of the unclaimed chairs. Ace slowly walks down, taking in their little scheme with amusement. After two more dashes, Boshi is pretty close to the door, and after ensuring no one is looking, Luffy opens the door and Boshi runs out into the open air.

"No dogs allowed in the Leakey Calderon?" Ace guesses with amusement.

Luffy shakes his head. "Tom's allergic. He's been sneezing up a fit, but I can't make Boshi sleep outside all the time!"

Well that explains a lot. "Of course. Where would you like to go first?"

"Well, Flourish and Blotts is right there," Luffy says with a shrug. He's not overly excited, which is no surprise to Ace. First off, books aren't really Luffy's thing, and secondly, they can see a rather big crowd bustling inside. There's always a crowd at Flourish and Blotts, considering it's one of the few stores that has all the necessary school book. He and Luffy are here rather early, so they aren't facing the big rush which always comes the week before school starts, but the line is enough to set them off.

"Let's get it over with," Ace says grimly.

The pair force their way into the shop as gently as they can. Too much strength and people will go flying— it's hard though with everyone else pushing and pulling. They try and make it as quick an event as possible, and once they both have the necessary books (for Ace, the ones that were a new requirement and his family didn't have hand-me-downs for) they wait impatiently in the line to check out. Despite the cramped space and the eager children with sticky fingers, Boshi is an incredibly good sport about the whole thing, keeping close to Luffy and Ace and doing his best to stay out of the way. All three of them exhale with relief though when they reach the front of the line.

Luffy eagerly places his books on the countertop first. After ringing them up, the sales assistant finally produces a number. It's rather a lot to Ace, but it doesn't seem to phase Luffy until he reaches in his money pouch.

"Ahhh," Luffy says slowly. "I forgot."

"What?" Ace asks with concern.

"I spent most of my money on our room at the Leakey Calderon," Luffy says sheepishly. "I don't have enough."

Ace's hands are full, so he facepalms inwardly.

Luffy shrugs. "Oh well. Guess we have to come back—"

"No," Ace says dangerously. "I am not waiting in that line again."

"But I don't have any money."

"I think I have enough to cover us both. You can pay me back after we go to the bank, okay?" Ace sighs in relief when he finds that he does have enough money for both of their stuff if he uses all of what his mother gave him for school supplies.

"Shrinking charm?" the salesclerk asks after everything's squared away.

Ace nods. Hermione can unshrink them when they find her again. Not like they're going to crack them open any time soon anyways. Both boys pocket their now-small stack of books and head out of the shop.

"So Gringotts then?" Ace says, gesturing to the large white building in the center of Diagon Alley.

"Why don't you go get your potions stuff while I go to the bank?" Luffy suggests. He's shuffling a little and worrying the hem at the bottom of his shirt.

"Because I don't have any money?" Ace answers, raising a brow at his brother's behavior. "Besides I'd have to go back with you anyways for your ingredients."

"Oh. Right."

"Lu?"

"I'm fine. Let's hurry, yeah?" Luffy says, shaking off whatever is bothering him.

It doesn't take them long to reach the stone steps of the bank. Ace hesitates at the entrance though.

"I don't think they'll let Boshi in, Luffy," Ace says.

Luffy frowns for a moment, clearly trying to think of a way around it. Thankfully, Boshi saves them both the trouble by walking over to a nearby tree and planting himself beside it, silently telling them to just go on.

"We'll be back soon!" Luffy calls.

Ace rolls his eyes. "Come on then."

Though Ace has been to the bank plenty of times with his parents, watching Luffy go through the process of confirming his identity and providing a small golden key that Ace is frankly surprised he hasn't lost by now, is sort of odd. Even odder, is Luffy's strangely muted mood. Ace prods him about it, but his brother just shifts and shrugs or answers with complete non-answers. Ace can't make heads or tails of it until the reach the Potter vault and the goblin opens the hatch.

Ace can only blink as he stares at the mountains of coins. Luffy could buy a house in Diagon Alley, three Nimbus 2000s, and the Chudley Cannon quidditch team and only make a dent in his funds. He knew Luffy was rich, but he had no clue it was _this_ rich.

He looks towards his brother to say exactly that, but finds Luffy is kneeling at the piles and quickly shoving money in his brown leather pouch. His eyes are studiously set on his task, and Luffy's mood suddenly makes sense to Ace.

Luffy's unhappy with his wealth. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact he saw the Weasley vault last year. Comparatively, Ace's parents' funds are utterly meager. Which in reality they are, but the difference is stunning. He remembers how Luffy quickly explained that he had enough money from last year left over (and getting a free set of Lockhart's books which were easily the most expensive things on the list helped), and that they should just head home. Now Ace understands why. Though he is always aware of the poverty he and everyone at the Burrow experiences and he's occasionally gotten anxious when he really considers the extent of it, Ace would never swap situations with Luffy.

Luffy might be richer in this world, but Ace would never trade having parents for all the gold in Gringotts... Ace is sure Luffy has noticed the trade off as well. But none of this is his brother's fault. If he was given the choice, Ace knows what Luffy would have chosen.

Ace thinks that actually having so much money makes his little brother feel worse.

And Luffy shouldn't feel bad for what he cannot control, so Ace kneels besides the younger boy and picks up a gold piece before examining it idly.

"You know," he begins, quiet enough to prevent the goblin at the front of the vault from hearing. "Pops' treasury looked a lot like this."

Luffy slowly looks up from his mountain of galleons.

"Once, Marco, Thatch, Izou, and I were assigned to tally up the funds from the recent raid. We got pretty bored and decided to take a break. Thatch came up with the brilliant idea to play Marco-Polo in a room full of sharp, hard treasure."

Luffy's eyes grow warmer. "Do you—"

"I'll be it first," he says. "No Observation, okay?"

"Yeah!" Luffy jumps away from Ace as the older closes his eyes.

"Marco!" Ace calls.

"Polo!" Luffy's giddy cry calls. Ace rushes forward and promptly knocks over a stack of knuts.

Over the next twenty minutes the two brothers end up utterly destroying the once neat mountains of coins. They slip and slide on the coins on the floor and fall over into the mountains of gold, silver, and bronze. After they finish playing due to Ace's reminder of their time-limit for shopping, they view the results of their game and laugh long and hard while the goblin at the entrance stares at them, dumbfounded.

Needless to say, the pair leave the bank in much higher spirits.

"Boshi!" Luffy cries the moment they exit the doors. The dog leaps to his feet and happily meets Luffy halfway for a long petting and scratching session. Ace smiles and joins Luffy in his mission of showering the dog in affection.

Once that's taken care of, the three start down the main road of Diagon Alley.

"What should we get now? Potions supplies?"

"Oh! Let's get Ace a wand!" Luffy suddenly says.

"What? No!" Ace protests. "Wands are too expensive!"

"But yours is broken," Luffy counters.

"It works enough." A bit of an exaggeration, but that isn't the point. He meant to steal enough money to buy a wand, but with the whole Chamber of Secrets mess, he rather forgot to get sufficient funds. But it's still his burden to do so, not Luffy's

"Think of it as a second birthday gift," his brother suggests.

"No. You got me all that candy and meat, remember? And last year we got those tattoos! I'm not letting you spend more money on me."

Boshi suddenly stumbles, making Ace look towards him in concern. Both brothers stop to see if the dog is somehow injured, but after a moment Boshi slowly stands back up, seemingly unharmed. Ace wonders if the summer heat is getting to him.

"Ace. I don't like money. I like people," Luffy states. "Let me spend my money in a way that makes me happy."

Ace pauses, stymied by the statement. That's incredibly true. Luffy truly has no fondness for money. Ace doesn't either. It isn't something either of them have ever actively pursued as a goal. And like Luffy stated, money isn't people. Ace gets the sentiment perfectly... Ace would probably do the same in Luffy's situation. But Ace wants to make sure his brother remains taken care of in every way possible— financially included (though based on everything Ace has seen, things tend to just work out for his brother, regardless of circumstance). When he thinks about it, he knows he shouldn't tell Luffy how to spend his money since he is an adult, but Luffy doesn't really do mature unless the situation calls for it. Looking more closely at the matter though, the only pricey things Luffy has offered to buy were the tattoos that both of them got last year, too-expensive meat and candy for Ace's birthday, and now a wand. It isn't like Luffy's been spending it left and right without consideration. So Ace's overbearingness might not be incredibly necessary. So perhaps he should take a step back and close his mouth... he'll still keep an eye out for Luffy though. After all, it's an older brother's job to.

"Alright," he agrees slowly. "You can buy me a wand and spend a bit here and there, but not a lot! Luffy, you need to be careful. Money is important in this world!"

Luffy opens his mouth.

"Even if you do have an honest to god fortune."

Luffy crosses his arms and mutters. "I don't want a fortune."

"We have to deal the hand that's dealt to us." Ace lightly pats his brother's head. "Now come on, let's go to Ollivander's. Ah, but let's get Boshi some water first. I don't think he looks very well. The heat might not be agreeing with him."

"Let's go to that ice-cream place!" Luffy says, eagerly leading the way to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour.

After three large scoops of ice cream (half-off. Apparently Luffy's been around the shop a couple times already and the owner absolutely adores him) which Ace allows Luffy to pay for due to his new resolve and his promise to his mother, and some water for Boshi, the brothers and the black-haired dog head to Ollivander's. They have to wait in the chairs for a bit as the wandmaker is thoroughly entrenched in helping what looks like a first-year find the right wand.

"What do you think the next Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher will be like?" Luffy wonders aloud as he kicks his slightly too-short legs beneath the chair.

"I have no idea. I just hope they aren't complete frauds." On paper, Defense Against the Dark Arts should be Ace's favorite class. Based on empirics, it's been one of his most frustrating and disappointing.

"Squirrel and Locked Cart were pretty awful," Luffy says. That's an understatement to say the least.

Lockhart disappeared overnight, vanishing from the school unnoticed in the complete chaos the fallout from the Chamber of Secrets brought. Of course, compared to finding out about the Chamber of Secrets and hearing about how the great 'Harry Potter' beat up a basilisk, Lockhart seemed pretty subpar. If anyone doubted that he was a complete hack, there was plenty of proof in his absence alone. The only one who really minded was Hermione, who still valiantly defended the teacher in their conversation about him. Then Ace asked her what spells she learned that year and she refused to speak to him for the rest of the day.

Ace grins and doesn't even bother correcting his brother. Before Ace can say anything in reply, Ollivander finally turns to their party.

"Mmm, Mr. Potter. 11 inch holly with a phoenix feather core. From the rumors I've heard, you've already done great things with that wand," the old wizard murmurs.

Ace glances at his brother curiously, but Luffy merely shrugs in response.

"And I haven't seen you before, but I do know a Weasley when I see one. I remember every wand I've ever sold to your family. My, the list is too long to go through. Now I suppose I'm adding you to the collection." Ollivander gestures Ace forward. "Let's see what we can find."

In a time-tested tradition, Ollivander pushes wand after wand into Ace's hand before snatching them away in a fit of energy and disappearing back into the shelves. This continues for longer than Ace cares to say.

"Ah, I thought I had you with the willow and unicorn hair, but apparently not. Perhaps with a different core..."

A pale wand is shoved into his hands, and an inexplicably good feeling overtakes him. He feels suddenly like he's back on the _Moby Dick,_ riding along with the gentle waves. The wand is warm and comforting in his hands. And if Ollivander attempts to take it away, Ace isn't going to let him without giving a fight.

As it is, the wandmaker smiles.

"Fourteen inches, willow, containing two phoenix feathers," Ollivander says. "These were the feathers of an especially old phoenix. It was one of the oldest alive. It says much of rebirth and legacy."

Ace shifts a little but grins at the words. He likes the phoenix core. It makes him think of Marco... no wonder it's so comforting to him.

"Cast something!" Luffy urges from behind him.

Ace has to catch himself. "No, I can't yet. It's still summer, remember?" The moment he gets to the castle though...

Luffy easily forks over a staggering seven galleons, which makes Ace a little light-headed. He didn't know wands actually cost _that_ much. He has to admit to himself that it likely would have taken him a few years to steal seven galleons worth of pocket change from the Slytherins. He suddenly realizes that his mother and father are going to wonder about his wand, and now Ace is panicking about what he's actually going to say. Bloody hell.

But the hominess of the wand persists, and he finds he can't feel too much regret.

* * *

Ace wakes in a cold sweat. He's afraid to open his eyes because in his mind's eye, all he sees is Akainu and his little brother bleeding out. That isn't happening, he recognizes this on some level. But his chest has an ache in the shape of a hole. On the off chance that Luffy and he are bleeding out and dying, Ace is going to keep his eyes closed so he can avoid seeing it again. He _can't_ see it again. He might go mad. So he keeps his eyes shut. He might keep them closed for the next year if he has to.

"Ron, Ronald," a voice calls.

Ace shakes his head. He won't.

" _Rennervate_!" another voice casts, and the rush of adrenaline and energy is so sudden, Ace's eyes pop open rebelliously. In his immediate line of vision is Hermione, brow furrowed and face tense. He dizzily sits up and stares around the cabin in a fit of anxiety. There's the strange man who was asleep in their cabin earlier, but Ace barely registers him. On the seat across is Ginny, who's holding Luffy's head on her lap. She slaps him and calls his name, but Luffy doesn't stir. There's no hole. Which is good. No blood. But the pain on Luffy's face, usually so deeply hidden, is on complete display in his sleepless fit of unconsciousness. If he's imagining what Ace was...

The older brother staggers to his feet, ignoring the muted sounds of Hermione's words. He goes to Luffy and kneels beside him. Ace places a hand on Luffy's chest, the same place where Ace himself still feels an ache and leans in close to his ear.

"Luffy. I'm alive. Luffy. Wake up. Luffy. _Please._ " He mutters like that for a while until his little brother slowly opens his eyes. Like Ace, he's sweating and dazed. Ginny helps him sit up and Ace slumps back in his seat, utterly exhausted mentally. Despite the fit of energy the spell gave him, inwardly he feels utterly empty and bereft of life.

Luffy's face is incredibly solemn. More than he wagers Hermione has ever seen before. Ace is sure he doesn't look much better. But Luffy just isn't supposed to look like that. The older brother reaches down deep, but can't seem to manage a single scrap of lightheartedness to soothe the sudden emptiness.

"What happened?" he manages eventually. And it's only now he realizes that he's still panting. Ace forces himself to take deep breaths and calm his rapidly beating heart.

"There was a Dementor," the older man in the cabin explains— Professor Lupin, if he remembers what Hermione said earlier right. He keeps a concerned eye on Ace and Luffy as he digs through his bags.

"What the bloody hell is a Dementor?"

"They're dark creatures. They feed off happiness, sucking it away from their victims," the man continues.

"So that was what it was, then? It sucks all the happiness away until you pass out?" Ace asks.

"Well, no." Lupin pauses. "It's rather rare for people to pass out. It's usually only due to very... traumatic events."

"Oh," he utters.

Ace's eyes fall to the ground. Something traumatic. Something like a war. Something like being murdered. Something like watching his brother bleed out. Yes, all of the above. And all the same apply to Luffy. It's Ace's fault. If he hadn't gotten captured, Luffy would never have had to be in that position to begin with. He wouldn't have the dreams or the terrible flashbacks both of them are still suffering from right now. Ace fucked up. He fucked up so much.

"Ace." Luffy is leaning over the gap. His eyes are serious, and Ace can barely meet his gaze. "Stop it."

Worrying about what he's done is only going to stress his brother out more, so Ace shoves it down, bottling it for another occasion when he can own up to his mistakes alone. Lupin seems to have found what he was looking for, but after watching them his eyes have only become more troubled. Ace hates it when people see things like this. It isn't any of their business.

"Here, eat this chocolate, it's the quickest way to combat the effects." Lupin snaps off a square before hesitating and simply breaking the bar in half and giving one part to each brother. "You have had, admittedly, rather serious reactions. You may want to visit Madam Pomfrey when you get to the castle. She'll have more chocolate for you."

"Thanks," Ace mutters. Both brothers accept the food before half-heartedly nibbling on the edges. Luffy's hands are visibly trembling.

Lupin hesitates for a moment before standing. "I need to have a word with the conductor. I will return _quickly_." With that, the older wizard leaves the cabin.

In his wake there is only silence, and neither brother seems to be capable of filling it.

"I— are you two okay?" Hermione asks in a small voice.

And Ace has a weary urge to snap at her and ask if they bloody look okay. But he doesn't want to take this out on Hermione.

"Sort of." He answers more honestly than usual.

There's another beat of tense silence.

"Nami," Luffy says, and extends his largely uneaten chocolate chunk to Ace's sister. Looking closer, Ace can see the pinched lines of pain in her face. He distantly appreciates her strength in being the calm, put-together one in the face of his and Luffy's dissemble.

"I'm alright," Ginny replies. But Luffy isn't taking it. He snaps off a row and pushes it into his navigator's hands. His green eyes are intent, and so Ginny slowly curls her fingers around the candy and eats it before it melts. After the first few bites, she already looks better. Ace feels warmer too, but it takes a good half of the chunk to get there. Even then though, the _memory_ of the emptiness is incredibly poignant, it's too close to feel truly warm or content.

All Ace wants to do is curl up with his brother and go lie down until the pain stops. He doesn't want to be around Ginny or Hermione or anyone except for Luffy. Because with Luffy he can let part of himself go. Or better yet, he can comfort Luffy, which soothes Ace's soul more than he can say. In this moment, the fact that he can't gnaws at him greatly. It's so _stupid._

The limits of what is appropriate and not appropriate in this world are beyond idiotic. And the fact that he and Luffy can't claim to be brothers and have anyone, even strangers, believe them is more irritating still. Why couldn't Luffy just have been born his blood brother this time? Maybe they could have gotten away with their closeness. As it is, neither of them can without weird looks and whispers, even Dean, Seamus, and Neville still whisper. Ace wants to scream at the murmurers to go away. This is between Ace and Luffy, no one else can understand...

His frustration isn't helping the swirling murky emotions in his stomach at all, and he forces himself to redirect his thoughts.

"Here, Hermione." Ace gives the leftover quarter of chocolate to their third friend. While she isn't close to Nami's shape, she still looks considerably shaken. She had her happiness sucked away same as the rest of them; it's just the memories that came with it that are still wracking Ace's and Luffy's minds.

"Ron, oh, you still don't look well at all. If Professor Lupin said—"

"I might throw up if I eat any more." And isn't that utterly disturbing.

Though normally she'd argue, after looking in his eyes she concedes.

"Ace."

The older boy turns to his brother, whose expression is still too dark.

"Gin, can you—" Ace makes an abortive gesture. The red-haired girl reluctantly stands and releases her grip on the younger brother, making a space that Ace quickly claims. Once seated, he leans against his brother.

No one understands how necessary it is sometimes to _feel_ someone living.

Luffy presses their foreheads together and they rest there for a moment, staring into each other. And when Lupin comes back and awkwardly retakes his seat, neither of them move.

* * *

Hundreds of eyes track Luffy, Ace, and Hermione as they enter the already-full Great Hall. Whispers follow them and their feet seem to echo with each step.

"Ron!" Ginny waves them down to a spot near the front where she's saved them some seats. Her voice is like a shout compared to the murmurs.

Luffy takes a seat beside Ginny, and Ace claims the other side, leaving Hermione to sit across from them with Neville, Dean, and Seamus on either side. The other boys utter hellos, but other than a dip of the head, that's all they get from the brothers.

"Hello," Hermione says, fidgeting slightly. "I suppose we've missed the sorting, haven't we?"

"Er, yeah." Seamus' eyes keep flicking towards Ace and his brother. "Lot of Hufflepuffs this year."

"Probably a good thing. The world could do with more Hufflepuffs," Ginny says. "The world can only handle so many Gryffindors."

That earns her a few chuckles despite the atmosphere. Silence ensues after though.

"Um, are you two okay?" It's timid Neville who works up the courage to ask. "We all heard about the Dementor and, well."

Luffy, who was looking nowhere particular, suddenly levels his gaze on Neville who physically flinches along with Seamus and Dean.

Ace understands why. Though his own stoic face is nothing to scoff at, Luffy's is exceptionally harsh. Perhaps because of how soft and easy-going it normally is, flipping expressions at the slightest of breezes. But Luffy's face hasn't twitched since the Dementor attack. It's startling for sure. Even Professor McGonagall was taken aback when she shepherded Hermione, Ace, and Luffy to Madam Pomfrey after they got off the train.

"We're okay," Ace says for the two of them. The only thing as disturbing as Luffy's smileless face is his silence. Luffy chatters nonstop. He always has something to say. Except when there's nothing good to say.

Dumbledore stands and cuts off the uncomfortable silence.

"Welcome to another year at Hogwarts," Dumbledore begins. "Before we begin the feast, I have a few announcements to make. There will be two changes to the staff this year. Let us welcome Professor R.J. Lupin, who has kindly agreed to assume the position of Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts."

"That explains how he dealt with the Dementor," Hermione says, connecting the dots as she and everyone else applauds. "And how he knew chocolate would help."

Dumbledore continues, "Next, seeing as Professor Kettleburn, our previous Care of Magical Creatures teacher, has decided to retire in order to spend more time with his remaining limbs, please help me welcome our very own Rubeus Hagrid to the position."

The entire school body seems to blink as one before steady applause builds, led by the Gryffindor table most especially. Ace and Luffy muster the energy to add to the loud burst of noise.

Once the applause tapers, Dumbledore starts again, but with a much more sober tone. "It is my duty to inform you that the Ministry of Magic has decided it best to have Hogwarts play host to the Dementors of Azkaban."

Any energy Luffy and Ace received from Hagrid's unexpected promotion vanishes. Luffy sighs and places his head on the table.

"The Dementors will be stationed at the entrances to the grounds. While they are under strict orders not to enter the castle itself, you will on occasion see them as you go about your daily activities. Under no circumstances are you to approach them."

Ace scoffs and mutters, "Like I'd bloody want to."

"Now that that unhappy matter has been dealt with, it's time to move on to brighter topics. For this, I contribute 'Let the feast begin.'"

Gasps come from the first years who stare with wonder at the sudden bounty of food. Normally the food wouldn't have fully appeared on the plates before Ace and Luffy were digging in. As it is neither of them move at first. Ace leads by example, serving himself a bit of potatoes and roast beef. Luffy sighs again, but he does lift his head and take some pork and shepherd's pie. Seeing as Ace can't cheer his brother up, at the very least he should make sure Luffy eats. Their lack of vigor offsets everyone else, but Ace can't bring himself to care.

"Luffy," Ginny begins. People stare at her strange utterance, but Luffy looks up. "I did some research on what you asked about in your last letter."

Luffy stares for a moment, clearly trying to remember what it was he last wrote about. Then his eyes light up in realization.

"You did? What did you find?" Luffy speaks— finally. And it's with interest too.

"I think it's possible," Ginny goes on to say. "But you should ask Hermione. I bet she knows more about the subject."

"Hermione," Luffy says.

"Yes?" their third friend answers attentively, clearly trying to perpetuate the process of drawing Luffy out.

"Can you enchant a ship to fly?!"

Ah, Ace remembers now. He forgot, what with Luffy blowing up his aunt and everything. The older brother is glad that Ginny was paying attention at least.

"Oh." Hermione pauses and thinks for a moment. "I think so. If you can enchant a car, then you should be able to do a boat too. It would have to have some kind of propulsion system I think, though."

"That would be the best thing ever!" Luffy turns to his brother. "What should we name it, Ace?"

"I don't know, it's your flying ship," Ace points out.

"It should be the 'flying' something. Like the _Flying Dutchman_ , but more awesome," Luffy continues.

"The _Flying Eagle?"_ Seamus puts forth.

"It shouldn't be something that can already fly, that doesn't make sense," Luffy decides. That earns him some bemused and exasperated looks, and Ace grins a little.

"If you're enchanting an object that isn't supposed to fly, it should be named after something that also isn't supposed to fly," Ace translates for the rest of them.

"Like the _Flying Beetle_ or the _Flying Caterpillar!_ " Luffy says.

"Those are butterflies, Lu." Ace can't help but laugh, and it spreads down the table. "And don't beetles already fly?

"Not tiger beetles," Luffy retorts knowledgably, earning him several stares of dumb surprise.

Luffy laughs. Ace ruffles his brother's hair and Luffy offers a smile, made only brighter by quickly dispersing grey clouds. All of their friends seem to relax at the sight, and Ace does too. All's how it should be.

"Why not just name it the _Flying Ship_? That works, doesn't it? Since ships aren't supposed to fly in the first place," Hermione points out.

More chuckles ensue, Ace meets Ginny's eyes over Luffy when his brother leans forward to gesture dramatically to Dean. Her gaze is very knowing. And Ace realizes that she knows that the only way to cheer Ace himself up is to get Luffy happy again. She is clever... He mouths a thank you which she merely smirks at.

The rest of the feast is filled with meaningless discussion on a flying ship that doesn't exist yet. Ace makes sure to tease his brother a lot and Hermione offers her two cents when the relative logic of the matter skews too far off path.

All of them are smiling by the end of the feast, and Luffy is bouncing on the balls of his feet with excitement on the subject. They never found a name, but Ace is sure Luffy will think of a good one eventually.

"Ne, Nami, will you be my navigator when I get my flying ship?" Luffy asks. Ginny gives him a wide smile and a wink.

"Depends on how much you'll pay me," she replies.

Luffy frowns. "I guess I could bring you some meat..."

"That doesn't count as payment for anyone but you, idiot!" Ginny replies. "Besides, meat is free here!"

"But money's stupid, Nami," Luffy pouts.

"Wave?" Seamus asks. "Is that a new nickname?"

"Yeah! 'Cause Nami's like a wave!" Luffy clarifies with frantic arm motions. Ace just stares as everyone seems to slowly nod to themselves and accept Luffy-logic just like before.

"He's going to get away with it, isn't he?" Ace utters to Ginny as he watches Luffy continue explaining to Neville, Seamus, and Dean. "He's going to call you Nami without anyone giving a second look."

"That's Luffy for you." Ginny grins.

"It sucks though! Luffy doesn't mean anything; I can't explain it away like he can."

His sister bores into him with an exasperated look.

"What?" Ace asks.

"A 'luff' is the leading edge of a ship's sail," she explains. "Just say he's a good flier, like he's catching the wind."

Ace is quiet for a few moments before he facepalms. "I'm an idiot." He knows that word! It's rarely used on the sea, but still. That's blow to his sailor's pride.

"Yes, yes you are." Ginny grins, smug.

"Ace, Nami, come on!" Luffy says from a little down the table. "I heard the Fat Lady's gonna sing again tonight and I wanna see the first years' faces!"

After exchanging looks with Ginny, he calls back. "Coming, Luffy!"

* * *

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 **So, there we are, the start of year three!**

 **Such gratitude to my beta breather who thought of how to integrate Luffy's name so seemlessly.**

 **On why Luffy is Harry and Ace is Ron.**

 **I've had a lot of people comment, wondering why Luffy is Harry and Ron is Ace when their attitudes seem better suited if swapped- The long and short is that Luffy is the main character in OP, so that's really it, everyone. I'll go on, but it's going to be analysis and reiteration of that point, so abandon now if you want. So, Oda 100% could have written a series with Ace as a main-characcter. He's got all the elements- traumatic past, exxtreme strength that only grows with his story and character arc, precious people to care about, and limitless hunger. Hell, from certain standpoints, Ace would be a better main character than Luffy! But Oda didn't make him the main character. Luffy, the airhead, comic relief is the main character, who the plot pivots around. Ace may have made some key moments happen in the series, but I'm willing to argue that Luffy does to a more serious extent, and he perpetuates them. For the sheer amount of action that Luffy starts/perpetuates, that has his character arcs lining up more with Harry Potter than Ron Weasley, who is often just trying to cope with all the shit. While I'll also say, Harry and Ace line up more cleanly than Harry and Luffy, _Ron and Luffy_ definitely don't in my opinion. Also, it was more interesting for me to investigate Ace with the Weasley family than Luffy who honestly probably gives less of a damn because he's such a lovable... Also, as to why more poeple haven't noticed the extremeness of their character changes, the only ones who would notice for Luffy are the Dursley's and Hagrid. The Dursley's a) don't give a damn, and b) I'll be addressing how Luffy behaves when he's in their abusive clutches during this year arc, so that should offer some insight. Also, Hagrid did notice it in First Year, but he really only had minimal interaction with a kid whp seemed awkward and scxared of all this magic shit anyways even as he was slowly warming up. Also, Ace is just maturing. Weird shit happens at Hogwarts. **

**Be sure to let me know if that logic is sound enough to y'all. I'll probably add more as comments come in.**

 **Feel free to review just 'cause too. :}**


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